The Green Flash
by Flaming-Piano
Summary: When a series of supernatural events entwine the fates of two totally separate universes, a couple of adventurous young kids will discover drama, danger, and friendship across realities! It's tough being a stranger in a strange land...
1. Prologue

**THE GREEN FLASH**

**!NEWS! GREEN FLASH 2 IS COMING VERY SOON! WATCH FOR IT! **

**A Gravity Falls/Steven Universe crossover story**

**Some information to consider before reading:**

**You'll probably enjoy this story more if you've watched both Gravity Falls and Steven Universe closely, but if you're a huge fan of one and not so much the other, that will still work. If you haven't seen ANY of one show and all of the other, you will be confused, but go for it.**

**For Gravity Falls, this story takes place between "The Love God" and "Northwest Mansion Noir." For Steven Universe, this story takes place after sometime after "Full Disclosure."**

**An alternate timeline is created by the events in this story for both shows. It isn't an "alternative universe;" assume the events in every episode up to this story took place exactly as they did in the canon. The plots for each show also continue canonically as they would have after the events detailed here; with whatever interference is implied by the events in this story.**

**This is my first story posted here! Hope you find something you like, feedback is always good.**

**Edit: Finally got the real cover image up! Check out my profile for links to see a bigger version!**

_"Green flashes are real (not illusory) phenomena seen at sunrise and sunset, when some part of the Sun suddenly changes color (at sunset, from red or orange to green or blue). The word "flash" refers to the sudden appearance and brief duration of this green color, which usually lasts only a second or two at moderate latitudes." _

_-Andrew T. Young, "An Introduction to Green Flashes"_

**-1: Dipper-**

Plenty of weird stuff went down in Gravity Falls. I mean, "weird" was basically the definition of the place. But out of all the oddities Dipper Pines had witnessed; the disturbed gnomes, the triangular demons, the body-swapping carpets, convenient store ghosts, and the whole wicked supernatural conspiracy; this one was something different.

"Come on, Mabel. You just gotta wait a liiiittle longer. It's worth it." Dipper implored of his sister, who was sitting upside down on a rock, lifting her pet pig Waddles into the air and mimicking airplane sounds.

They waited in an unassuming clearing, surrounded by tall pine trees and the sound of a clear day that was winding to a close. Warm orange light soaked the forest as twilight approached. "But Dipper, this is so boooring," Mabel replied. "We should have least brought some snacks or SOMETHING." Dipper was unmoved, but also hungry. He turned to his sister. "It happens just as the sun sets, but it's not exact, so-

"DIPPER!"

Mablel's eyes sparkled as she dropped Waddles with a sequel and slid off the rock, transfixed by the sight before her. Dipper turned his head with a gasp, but he was too late. The glimpse of the beach- the gorgeous soft yellow, orange and pink beach, so alien a sight in the dry red and green forest, was gone.

"DANG IT, Mable, I missed it. But…" his excitement made him breathless. "Did you see it?"

"The BEACH!" Mable cried in wonder, "Dipper, you're right! Right there in the forest was a _beach!_"

**-2: Steven-**

Rosy sunlight bathed the shoreline, the ceaseless waves humming along as they always did, every night, in Beach City. The many arms of the goddess statue seemed to reach out to cradle the sun, a sight that would been bizarre on any other beach in the world, but was ordinary for this one. Two children where rushing away from the house embedded in the goddesses torso, sprinting towards the water.

"We can't miss it!" Steven cried, his sandaled feet kicking up dust.

"But Steven," his companion replied evenly, "Can there even be an exact "time" for the sunset? I mean, you have to know that."

Steven was unfazed by her logical observation. "This… thing, it's sooo cool! It's amazing." He turned to Connie, wanting to express the depth of his sincerity. "I really want to show you."

The pair made their way down to the beach, until Steven stopped at an unassuming spot right on the shore. "Iiiiiit's HERE!" He stopped running, holding out his hand. "At least, I hope so."

The two of them sat down, facing the water. The act of waiting seemed to crush any notion of idle chit chat, and in truth they enjoyed each other's company well enough without words. But waiting also makes one anxious. Steven started to fidget as the air grew colder, and Connie's gaze had wandered down the shore to-

"Hey Steven" she whispered. "Look at that." "Ohhh" Steven whined, still looking forward. "I guess we WERE too late…" Connie slipped her fingers around Steven's wrist and gently pulled him up, guiding him to the object she had noticed."

"WHaaaaaat?" Steven cried. "What is THIS doing on the BEACH?"

Laying partially exposed in the sand was a ratty old journal with a golden hand that had a large "3" written on it.

The object had a certain air about it, like an ancient tome. Steven slowly leaned down and picked it up, brushing off the sand respectfully. "WOOooooowwWWW!" he exclaimed. "This is so cool!" Connie and Steven brought their heads close, examining the cover of the journal. Steven had just worked up enough bravery to turn the first dog-eared page when Connie gave a start; the phone in her pocket was vibrating.

"Ohmigosh Steven, it's so late! I gotta get home before curfew." The trance of the journal was broken, and Steven looked up, the excitement of the find masking the usual disappointment he expected when Connie was called home.

"Aw man. But ok. Connie, you have to come over tomorrow! I still want you to see the forest that appears on the beach! And… we hafta look at this book closer."

Connie smiled. "Steven, you know I have school. I'll try to get my homework done early and make it in time tomorrow, ok?" Steven nodded.

"Buuut" Hesitatingly he held the journal out to Connie "You found it. Y-you should keep it."

Connie looked tempted for a second, but pushed the journal back into Steven's grasp. "You can look over it while I'm at school. Besides, who knows what my parents would say if they saw that."

For a second Steven considered what Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst might think of the weird book, but he quickly decided. They wouldn't care about it unless it pertained to Gem-stuff, and if it did, they should know all about it! The thought of the journals origins made his heart race.

"This is so awesome." He said, lifting his prize to the evening sky. "It's… a real mystery!"


	2. Chapter 2

**-3: Dipper-**

Dipper Pines limped along the sparkling shore of the crystal beach. He could feel the sunburn. The dry mouth. The sweating problem. The strain in his left leg that just kept getting worse. He still felt lucky, to have escaped that monster with nothing but some scraps and a sprained leg. But that thing was still… out there, wherever "here" was. Flown away into the light orange sky, screaming.

Dipper shuddered. All of this… all for that stupid book! Deep down, logically, he _knew _he could find a way home. It made statistical sense; ever other supernatural scrape he'd gotten into he'd found a way out of. But in his heart, he was devastated with anxiety. What if he never got home? Never saw his family or friends again? Mabel, Stan, Wendy, Soos, Mom, Dad… could it be a possibility he would never see them ever, ever again?

He sank into the sand, feeling tears creep into the corners of his eyes. Angrily he blocked them with his arm, his vision blurring, but, wait…

"Awah!" Dipper gave a wordless cry as the water in his eyes evaporated so he could get a better look at the precious civilization that lay before him. Aching, he got to his feet and hobbled towards the faint outlines of restaurants, stores, people…

He paused. What if it wasn't… people? What if this was alien world, an alternate universe, some kind of non-earth where the inhabitants ATE people instead of being people?!

He spotted a few obvious people at a little hut, ordering what looked like fries. Ok. It _was_ people. Fear shrugged out of Dippers way and he continued his slow march towards what he hoped would be some kind of help.

He approached the "Beach Citywalk Fries" hut. A kid with goofy yellow hair was manning the business, and Dipper found the immediate lack of adults a bit disorienting.

"H-Hello," his voice broke as he approached the fry stand. "Can you get me, like, a glass of water or something?" Dipper leaned hard on the little stand where you made orders, realizing how bad he must look to this kid, who, incidentally, was keeping his distance. "Also," he called, "Where uh, am I?"

"Beach Citywalk Fries" the kid replied, narrowing his eyes. "Do you have… any… money? It's a dollar charge for the cup. Dad's rules…"

Dipper couldn't even think. "Where am I then?" He asked again, annoyed. He had just fallen out of a different place and possibly time and space, no, he didn't have any money.

"Beach Citywalk… you're in Beach City, how do you not know that? Anyway," the kid said, shifting his eyes, "Don't tell anyone I told you this, but if you go over to the Big Donut they'll give you free water, im sure."

"Un, Thanks?" Dipper replied, not hiding his aggravation. Desperation, actually. He was amazingly thirsty, and now all he wanted was some fresh water.

The Big Donut was, at least, easy to find. Empty, too, he discovered, as he opened the doors and limped inside. It was blissfully air-conditioned.

"Hello, Welcome to the Big… Whoa." A young women with poofy blonde hair looked unusually shocked to see a costumer enter her restaurant. "Hey, kid, are you ok?"

"Ya, dang, what happened to you?" A lanky young man with some weird looking ears raised his eyebrows at Dipper with a sneer.

Dipper was reminded of Robbie, his heart sinking. He collapsed into the nearest chair, and asked pathetically "Do you have any water? For free?"

The blonde grabbed a large water bottle from a refrigerated machine and, amazingly, came over to Dippers table with it, sat down, and pushed it towards him. He drank with abandon, only after a few gulps did he realize that the two store clerks were regarding him with the same caution as one should regard a wild animal.

"Heeey, uh, sorry, I don't have any money for the this." He said, feeling rather embarrassed.

With a snort the tall guy replied "We don't charge for water," as if Dipper had just uttered the dumbest sentence in the universe. The guy crept away from behind the counter to settle by his companion, and there they sat, doing little to hide their obvious curiosity.

Dipper felt another layer of sweat begin to coat his body. "Hey uh, can I have some more water? Then I'll go. As a matter of fact, if you have a water fountain or…"

"So, like I said, are you ok?" The lady asked, and she seemed honestly concerned. Avoiding her question, Dipper took another generous swig of water, but as soon as he was ready to tell his story as honestly as he could, the bell on the door chimed as someone entered the restaurant.

A curly haired chubby kid opened the door with gusto, his face beaming. Clearly he had a huge secret that he didn't intend to keep a secret for long. In his hand was a red journal with a gold hand and the number "3" on it.

**-4: Steven-**

(The night before Dipper's arrival in Beach City…)

Enveloped by the musty darkness of a blanket wrapped over his head, Steven tried to get the beam of his flashlight to focus properly on the book. Nervously shifting, he peeled open a random page of the book and poured over it.

It wasn't like any other kind of book! It had awesome drawings like a comic, and plenty of hand written details, but it was also filled with some kind of weird code and strings of nonsense numbers. The pages detailed creatures who could have rivaled the Gem monsters that plagued Beach City; the "Gremloblin," Zombies, ghosts of all levels… a lot of it seemed like it might have been just for fun, but something about the hand written sincerity of the old book let Steven convince himself that it might be real.

"Squash… with a human face… and emotions?!" Steven laughed out loud, but caught himself. Pearl would be mad at him if she found him up this late… even if he was just reading the most interesting book ever.

Satisfied with his cursory journey through the pages, Steven turned back to the very first page:

_June 18,_

_It's hard to believe it's been six years since I began researching the strange and wondrous secrets of Gravity Falls, Oregon._

_In all my travels, never have I observed so many curious things! Gravity Falls is indeed –_

"STEVEN!"

"WAGH!" Pearl!" Steven yelled as the tall, slender and very stern Gem yanked the blankets off Steven's head and gave the boy a disapproving stare.

"Shouldn't you be asleep? You'll get tired, you have to sleep, remember the last time you stayed up all night? …What?"

Steven was returning her glare. "You PROMISED" he said.

"P-promised what?" Pearl replied, eyes shifting. "Promised that you wouldn't watch me sleep anymore." Steven said with crossed arms, satisfied that he had turned the tables on his mentor.

"For your information, I was NOT. I just happen to come in and see you up…"

Steven held up the mysterious book. "Do you know about this? Connie and me found it on the beach." Steven waited for Pearl to start into a lengthy and well-informed response. A history lesson, maybe. But she simply leaned in closer, hand on her chin, and stared as Steven, getting desperate, went to the length of opening the book and flipping through the pages.

Pearl recoiled as he did, with a "Yuck!" That thing is filthy. Well, something like that has nothing to do with Gems, that I can say for certain." She gave a dismissive flick of her hands.

"Awww, really?!" Steven said, feeling both disappointed and even more excited than before. "If YOU don't know where this book came from… who would?" his voice becoming hushed with the gravity of the mystery he found himself in.

Pearl clicked her tongue, impatient. "Oh I don't know, it looks like something that might belong to that weird guy… you know, the one who hangs out in the lighthouse."

"Oh! Ronaldo!" She was right. Ronaldo loved this kind of spooky mystery stuff. Yet… could Ronaldo have written this entire complicated book? Did he just make up "Gravity Falls" and all the weirdness that apparently lived there?

"That's a good theory Pearl." He tapped his head. "I should go ask everyone in the entire town about this book, and that way I might find out some clues about it, or even the person who wrote it!"

"Y-yes, that's, actually really obvious Steven, now put it away for now and go to sleep, please." Pearl stated, clearly desiring to be somewhere else.

Steven nodded "Yes, Pearl, I will." It at least made sense to get some sleep before he looked all over the whole town, even if he was far from done with the book.

"Gravity Falls…" he whispered, tucking the journal under his pillow and settling into his bed. Could it a real place? Steven had barely been more than few miles outside of his home in Beach City. He drifted to sleep, dreaming of a strange new city full of fantastic beasts and endless discovery.


	3. Chapter 3

**-5: Dipper-**

_"M-my journal!"_

Dipper turned to stand up and rush over in a panic like a normal person, but instead his injured leg slipped out from under him and he landed in a sweaty heap on the floor.

"Agh…" he lifted his head to look the chubby kid straight in the face. His eyes where wide with amazement, and he held the journal – DIPPER'S journal- against his face to cover his mouth. He lowered it to ask, infuriatingly, "A-are you ok?"

"I'm FINE!" Dipper cried, and lunged as fast as a dehydrated, crippled child can, intending to tear his journal away into put it back his jacket, where it should be. But the kid escaped by backing up slowly, raising the journal into the air with a bewildered frown. Dipper felt himself sling-shot again from exhausted rage to self-aware embarrassment, and stood up slowly, his hat shadowing his eyes. The restaurant was hushed.

Dipper breathed deeply. If he just told the truth, no one would have any reason to fight with him… "That journal is mine, and I came a long way to find it." He spoke as evenly as he could, hands turned palm out as he spoke. "Please."

The other kid, his expression becoming determined, lifted the book up slowly and held it out to Dipper, much to Dipper's amazement. This was too easy. "I wasn't the one who found it anyway." He held Dipper's gaze, intense. "You really, really need it, right?"

"Ha ha" Dipper blubbered, reaching out and taking the journal into his hands, relishing the familiar weight of an object from his own world. "Yes. Thank you! You don't know how important this is to me." Relief and confusion followed as Dipper quickly shoved the journal into his jacket. He didn't know which one he should thank: dumb luck or destiny.

"Can you answer one question in exchange?" The poofy-haired kid looked so excited Dipper was surprised he was keeping his feet on the ground.

"Are you… from Gravity Falls?!"

**-6: Steven-**

Steven was beside himself with joy for solving this part of the mystery. Who would thought that the mystery books owner would just be sitting in the Big Donut? Who would have guessed he was a kid just like Steven? And who would have guessed… that this kid was the one who wrote the book in Gravity Falls?! He held his breath, waiting for a reply.

"Yes! How did you know? Did you read the book?" The kid looked both surprised and worried. And tired. His brown hair was all messed up under a big hat with a tree on it.

"Ya!" Steven said. "I mean, hey, it wasn't private or anything, right?" He suddenly became worried too, reflecting the tense mood of this new person. But he didn't let that stop his line of inquiry. "You wrote it, didn't you?!"

"What? No way." Tree hat responded.

"WHAT? Wow! It really is a mystery then!" Steven cried. "Lars! Sadie! He turned to his friends, who were watching the conversation with interest. "I was gonna ask you about it, but I guess I don't have to now! Wait… you DON'T know anything about this mysterious journal, right?!"

"Well, um, I don't think we do…" Sadie said.

Lars cut in "Ya, we don't! Also, new kid, you might want to go to the hospital or something. You seemed like you couldn't walk right when you came in here. You look awful."

Tree hat recoiled at Lar's harsh tone, but Steven knew that coming from Lars, such sentiment was practically deceleration of friendship.

"Oh man! C'mon, I can take you a doctor or something!" Steven said, even though he couldn't really think of any doctors in town other than Connies parents. What where they even doctors of?

"Wait!" It was Sadie, emerging from behind the counter with a brown bag. "Take some food and water with you. No charge. You said you came a long way, right?"

The new kid looked overwhelmed, but still appreciative. "Right, ya… I mean. Thanks."

"Thank you!" Steven said, grabbing the bag. "See you guys!" He opened the door for the new guy, who shuffled out in a daze. Lars was right. He was limping along like a zombie. Steven felt hurt just looking at him. _Maybe…_

"Wait a sec!" Sadie called. "What's your name?"

"Dipper." The kid said, adding with more confidence, "Dipper Pines."

"I'm Sadie, and this- "It's Lars," Lars said, waving his hand as he turned on his heels back into the shop.

Steven turned to Dipper, holding out his hand. Beaming, he declared "I'm Steven Universe!"

"Cool name." Dipper took Stevens hand, and, despite the exhaustion from his ordeal, managed to answer Steven's friendly expression with a smile of his own.


	4. Chapter 4

**-5: Dipper-**

Dipper was running. A massive green moth was chasing him, its wings sprinkling chunks of light that flickered and hissed into nothing.

Rings fell away from its fearsome wings, tapering into a linked chain that ended in two huge rings on either side. As the monster flew, the rings clashed, images of a forest and a beach screaming into one another. The moth was both here and there, and it was shrieking in pain. Dipper could hear people calling his name; Mable and Stan, maybe; wait, was it the moth?

"Hey!" He called, stopping and turning to face the moth, worry for his own life pressed up against his desire to confirm the source of his families voices. "St-" Dipper was plunged into a pool of salty water, sinking, washed away by confusion. Nothing made sense.

Light flooded his vision, and Dipper found himself clinging to some crumpled sheets on an unfamiliar couch. White early morning light illuminated a rather cozy beach house; a table, a fireplace, a kitchen. Sparsely decorated, but clearly well loved. Dipper grabbed his hat from the table someone had set it on; heart still pounding from his nightmare. He found with relief that his journal was still tucked into his jacket.

He had no memory of how he had ended up there. He tried to recall- ya, he had meet that Steven kid, and they had started to head into town, but…? How did he get from there to here? As he slid off the couch, the injured leg he had forgotten about roared to life. He crouched by the table, wondering if he was in any real danger or not. After all, he had been given a place to sleep.

Peering around a corner, he noticed that the far corner of the room took on a very different décor than the rest of the place. The house gave way to a purplish rocky mountainside, inset with what appeared to be a door that sported a cryptic star shaped design. From any angle, it made no sense. Where WAS he?

Dipper sighed. He wanted so badly to walk over and investigate. The morning light had chased off some his fatigue, but it rushed forward again as the pain in his body reminded him of the previous days struggle. Dipper turned to face the other side of the house as he heard someone walking down the stairs, growing nervous.

It was Steven, rubbing his eyes until he noticed Dipper. "Hey!" You're awake finally!" He raced over, slowing as he seemed to realize that Dipper couldn't return the favor.

"Hi. Why am I here?" Dipper squeaked, deeply relived to see someone who wasn't new. Steven glanced down at Dippers bent, scraped leg, and then back up to his face, concerned. The he clenched his fists, furrowed his brow, and gave Dipper that same straight-on, determined stare he had shared at their last meeting.

"You're really hurt, right?" Steven asked, and he did look worried. Dipper nodded. "I could walk yesterday, but its- he tried to bend his knee, and grimaced. "It's worse today."

"This is a little weird, but don't move, ok?" Dipper definitely wanted to move.

"What are you doing?!" He wanted to run far, far away as Steven licked his own hand and then set his soggy palm on Dipper's injured leg.

Dipper was terrified with both fear and embarrassment as Steven backed away, suddenly sheepish "I-I'm sorry, I just wanted to see if it would work… I shouldn't have…"

Dipper suddenly stood up and bolted to the other side of the table, slamming his fists down and demanding "Ok-ay, what was that? Should I be worried? I'm worried."

Suddenly looking confused, Steven asked "Was your leg actually… hurt before?"

Dipper started. He twisted his leg, touched it carefully, and then headed back over to Steven, walking slowly and awkwardly as he tested out his limbs. "It's better." He stammered, reaching for that sharp sensation of pain but finding nothing. "You healed it? With your SPIT?" Dippers voice rose with disbelief. Why was nothing ever _normal_ in his life?

Steven was bursting with happiness. "I did it?! My healing powers are back!?"

"Uh… congratulations? " Dipper didn't know what to make of anything. He couldn't help but feel some of the infectious joy radiating from Steven. Also, his leg WAS completely healed. He may have been lost in another universe with no idea of how to get home, but at least he could walk normally now.

"Oh! Do you wanna wait for Garnet to come back and make pancakes, or should I just heat up a frozen breakfast?" Steven asked in a rush.

"Um… I can wait? Can you tell me how you healed my leg maybe?" Dipper asked, thinking that he might not get any direct answers from this kid. Steven narrowed his eyes "With my spit?"

"No, I mean, why and how is your spit… magical? Medicinal?" Dipper replied. He was _pretty _sure "medicinal" was an ok word for it.

"Oh!" Steven said, smiling but shifting his feet a tiny feet, betraying slight nervousness. "Because I'm a crystal gem!" He lifted up his shirt, revealing a large pinkish jewel where his belly button should have been.

Dipper narrowed his eyes and stared at it. Crazy.

"Caaaan you tell me what a crystal gem is?" Dipper asked, racking the back of his brain for any information he might have memorized from the journal about crystals or gems, but he found nothing that matched the person who stood in front of him. He certainly looked like an ordinary kid, and not a supernatural freak show that belonged in that book. Besides, well, the gem in his stomach.

Before Steven could reply, a bizarre musical tone sounded from the weirder corner of the room. A burst of light filled the beach house, and Dipper turned to see three alien women suddenly materialize on the flat pad in front of the door. It always got better.

"We are the crystal gems!" Steven cried, rushing over to greet the new arrivals.

**-6: Steven-**

"Guys! Guess what?" Steven asked as he raced over to his family, glowing with good news.

"Uhhh… What?" Amethyst asked with a tilt of her head and toss of her light purple mane, hands on her hips.

Steven allowed for a second of dramatic pause. "I got… my healing powers back!" He yelled, throwing his hands into the air and grinning.

"Wow! Awesome job, Steven!" Garnet and Amethyst happily praised him.

But Pearl asked "How? Are you sure?" with that concerned-yet-surprised voice of hers.

Steven gasped. He had to introduce Dipper to the Gems properly! He had been so happy about regaining his healing ability that he had neglected his new friend, who was standing alone on the other side of the room, his eyes round, mouth agape.

He raced over to Dipper, gesturing for the Gems to join them. "Guys, this is Dipper. He's actually awake this time!"

Dipper stared up the gems, seemingly unable to form a reply.

"Yo, what up?" Amethyst said.

"Nice to meet you." Pearl said evenly

And finally a quick but friendly "Hello" from Garnet.

"H-hello," Dipper croaked, his voice giving a noticeable crack as he raised a single hand in an awed greeting.

"His leg was hurt and he couldn't even walk. But I healed it," Steven took a breath, still amazed at his accomplishment, "just like I did with dad's knee a long time ago!"

As the gems congratulated Steven again. Dipper was finally blinking the last of the surprise out of his eyes and spoke up.

"How did I get here? What happened to me?" The entire group turned to face him, and he seemed to shrink away. "And, like, thanks, of course, I mean, uh…" he trailed off.

It was Garnet who stepped forward and said: "You passed out. And I picked you up…" she bent down to scoop up Steven with one massive hand "Just like this, and carried you here, to our home." Steven laughed, enjoying the sensation of being lifted and trusting Garnet completely. Dipper, however, blushed with embarrassment at the thought of being carried like a baby through town by this gentle giant.

"Hey Garnet, can you make pancakes for us like you said last night?" Steven asked from his perch in Garnets hand.

"Sure," she replied, and to Steven's delight she continued to hold him as she headed for the kitchen.

"Have fun with the new kid," Amethyst called as she wandered away into the bowels of the Crystal Temple.

Pearl stood regarding Dipper with deep concern, and then called to Garnet with a sigh "I'm going to investigate some more. I'll see you soon, Garnet." She quickly warped away in a flash.

Steven was a little disappointed that they didn't hang around, or tell him anything about what they were investigating. They always avoided his human friends; and at a certain points Steven had wondered if he should avoid humans, too, even if he was half-human himself. But the delicious smell of the pancake batter Garnet was preparing banished these complex concerns.

Dipper had found his way back unto the couch, and Steven was delighted to find that he had not only revealed the journal but also opened it. Steven rushed over and sat next to Dipper, straining his neck to get a good look at the open page. It detailed some kind of crystal that could grow and shrink things.

"Wow! That's cool!" Steven said, scooting closer. "Is this kind of stuff in Gravity Falls?"

"Actually, I found some of these crystals and used them once…" Steven's eyes grew round at Dippers reply, "Buuut it didn't end all that well, we had to destroy the samples I had, it's… kind of a long story."

"No way!" Steven was amazed. "So is all the stuff in journal actually REAL?! I… thought it might be made up." He said, feeling a little embarrassed that he hadn't had enough imagination to really believe in the outlandish weirdness the book detailed.

Dipper looked at Steven with interest. "Yes, it IS real! All of it is! It seems crazy, I seem crazy, but the weird stuff in this journal is what Gravity Falls is REALLY about, even if everyone keeps trying to pretend it's a normal town!" He was getting excited, gesturing with his arms and glaring. "And because I keep looking for this stuff" He brushed the book with the back his hand, "I end up in situations like THIS." He held his arms wide, gesturing to the whole of the beach house.

Steven was rather impressed with the whole performance. "It's ok. Weird stuff happens to me all the time, really weird stuff! Weird, dangerous stuff like monsters and spaceships." His gaze was locked on to Dipper; maybe he was sharing more information than he should, but his excitement was getting the better of him.

"So I believe you!" Steven finished. "Weird stuff is dangerous, but you can't help but investigate a good mystery, right?"

The brown haired kid seemed to be holding his breath; seemingly confused by Stevens confident reply. "

Ok." Dipper said solemnly. "Then do you believe that I'm not _just_ from another town, but another universe entirely?"

Steven's mouth fell open. If Dipper was trying to erode Steven's claim to faith, he was failing. Dipper just seemed cooler by the second. "Of course. I don't really understand what that means though? Like… another planet?"

"It's like… another Earth, but in a different universe." Dipper explained. "Do you have a pen and paper?"

As Steven rushed to find drawing supplies, Garnet brought over the pancakes and then promptly disappeared. Dipper ate them hastily as he sketched on the paper pad Steven had brought him, with Steven watching intently and eating slower.

Dipper drew a line separating two circles, labeled "Dippers Earth" and "Stevens Earth." In the negative space above them he wrote "Dippers Universe" and "Stevens Universe." As he articulated his basic multiverse concept to Steven, Dipper finally erased part of the line separating the "Universes."

"So basically, I found a portal that showed me your world the other day. But a few days ago, I accidently dropped my book into the hole. And then yesterday, trying to find a way to get the book back, I actually fell through the hole when a monster appeared and pulled me into this universe." Dipper drew a line connecting the earths.

"And then the monster, it was a _huge _moth, closed the hole behind me. I fell from a hole in the sky to the ground and hurt my leg. It wasn't even the same hole my book fell into, but it must have been close." He re-drew the line separating the universes, breathless from his long explanation.

Steven stared, trying to understand what Dipper was telling him. While it didn't really make much sense (he wasn't convinced that there could be two earths), he began to realize the most important part of this problem.

"So does that mean… you can't go back home unless you find a way to… cross… universes? And the special moth is gone?" Steven asked carefully.

Dipper nodded. "Good enough. And that's what im worried about. If this has any truth to it, I don't have any idea of how I can get home. I only know this because of stuff I learned from the journal, too. About multiverses and that kind of thing."

Steven narrowed his eyes at Dipper, asking in a high, suspicious voice "Are you a genius?"

"What, no, no…" Dipper replied, flustered. "Sorry about telling you all of this, I guess it doesn't matter much to you. I just like to tell somebody when im working through my ideas…" he trailed off, suddenly looking very lonely.

"It's ok!" Steven said. "I'm sure we can find a way back to your home. The gems might help you if I ask. And… you can live here until then!" Steven had no idea if the gems would agree to this for long, but he desperately wanted to make Dipper feel better. He might be able to heal physical injuries with a touch again, but mending sadness was still a far more complicated issue.

"Are you serious?" Dipper sounded skeptical of Steven's generous offer, but Steven nodded, trying to be as serious as he could. "Wow." Dipper sank back in the couch, focusing on breakfast, his energy spent.

The two boys relaxed into more casual conversation after a time. Was it was appropriate to call the gems Mrs. Pearl, Mrs. Garnet, and Mrs. Amethyst? How old where they? (the same age, coincidentally) Could you find a copy of Dippers journal in the library? How awesome, exactly, did the homemade pancakes taste?


	5. Chapter 5

**-7: Dipper-**

Beach City was actually rather similar to Gravity Fall, if you stopped to think about it. A small tourist town, slightly run down but with a certain "charm," as the guidebooks liked to describe such places. Local restaurants, an arcade, small government buildings. Dipper was surprised to find himself feel at home so quickly in a different universe, even if the air was humid and the ground was sandy. He and Steven were spending the day wandering around town, where the two of them had stopped everywhere they could to inquire about a large moth or any equally strange happenings in town. Frustratingly, the "giant moth" thing was all the only real lead Dipper had at the moment, and nobody was responding to it as well as Steven had that morning.

"No Steven, I haven't seen anything like that and I think I would remember if I did." A sweaty balding man had stepped out his shockingly tacky van to talk to the boys. Steven, apparently, was friends with the towns mayor. So far, Steven was a friend to everybody in town. "I-is this some kind of gem thing? Should I be worried? I don't want to have to prepare an evacuation this soon after the last time…" He pulled on his tie nervously, glancing at Dipper with suspicion.

"No, no!" Steven answered quickly. "It's nothing like that. Thanks for your time, Mayor Dewy!"

The boys stepped away and Steven pulled out a notepad, scratching off another name from the list of townies. "Hmmm… nobody knows anything so far." He said, tapping the notepad with his pencil, "But this was a good idea, Dipper! Now we don't have to remember who we asked because we have this list!"

Steven seemed to think every idea Dipper had was Nobel-prize worthy. On one hand, it made Steven himself seem a bit slow-witted; the kind of kid Dipper might need to avoid to maintain his (almost) teenage dignity. But on the other hand, Stevens positive attitude helped keep Dipper from missing Mabel and his own home too much. Just a day before, he had been too overwhelmed to form a coherent thought. But today, he was eager to explore this new world, and he was happy he that didn't have to go alone.

"Oh, look at this! The last person on the list is my dad!" Steven said, leading the way once again.

Dipper's imagination raced off with ideas of what Stevens dad might be like. Would he be like the gems? He had to be. Maybe he was huge and muscular… and green. Or red. With a gemstone in his… big hairy chest. A man like that would be would be stern and loud, but there was also a chance he was enthusiastic and gentle like Steven. He probably lived in another giant statue like the other gems did…

"Yo, Daddio!" Steven called, as they approached a small car wash, labeled with a neon elephant and the title "It's a Wash!"

"Kiddo!" From an ancient looking van a man emerged, so far removed from Dipper's hastily constructed expectations that he didn't register that THIS was Steven's dad until he started asking Dipper questions.

"Hey buddy, who's this?" The man said, setting his hands on his hips. He sported a very cancerous looking suntan, long hair but a balding head, with tattered casual clothes and a large girth. Gruff and crusty like Gruncle Stan, but not as old and less menacing.

"Mr… Universe? Uh, hi, I'm Dipper Pines."

To Dippers surprise, the man gave him a rough pat on the back and announced "Call me Greg! It's been a while since Steven's found a new friend! Small town and all."

"Dipper is from another Universe!" Steven announced, and Greg raised his eyebrows high. "And Dad, have you seen anything weird lately? Like… a giant moth monster?" Steven continued, not skipping a single beat.

"What, like Mothra?" Greg replied, the humor in his tone undercut by genuine concern.

Dipper wasn't used to having supernatural inquiries taken seriously, and while Greg seemed intent on dismissing the notion of giant moths, it wasn't because he thought they couldn't exist. It was just the same with Stan; Dipper understood that now, how adults would lie to keep kids safe. The knowledge made it no less frustrating.

But what DID make the situation less frustrating was the hot dogs Greg cooked up on a grill, as Dipper got to watch father and son with fascination. He felt totally out of place, but he still found himself enjoying Greg and Steven's casual manner, as well as the calming sea breeze and open sky.

They chatted idly for over an hour, and Dipper was starting to get anxious about time when Greg spoke up "Hey, why don't you guys go down to the arcade or something for a while? Hanging out with ole' Greg all day can't be all that fun for kids like you."

"I love hanging out with you, Daddio." Steven said sincerely, although Dipper mostly agreed with Greg. "Also..." Steven turned out his pockets. "I don't have any money."

"Ya, me neither." Dipper added.

"Wait a minute" Greg said, vanishing into the cluttered darkness of his van, digging about like a raccoon in a fresh pile of garbage. Some of the kitschy junk he pushed aside would have looked at home in Mystery Shack.

"Here we go!" He returned with a plastic bag full of quarters and plopped it into Steven open palms.

"Omigosh! Thanks dad!" Steven exclaimed, but Dipper stopped him.

"Wait, what about our investigation?" He announced. In truth, they lost enough time chilling at Greg's place. Worse yet, they had made no progress towards a solution for getting Dipper home.

"Awww but… the arcade is really cool! Do they have an arcade in Gravity Falls? They just installed a "Dance Mat Revolution" game at ours! Oh man… I've never played it yet, but I heard that it supports two players at ONCE!" He "ooed" as if he had just uncovered a great idea. "I can play it with YOU, Dipper! Connie texted that she has too much homework today, and the last time I took the gems there it was a disaster, and…"

"I'm way too old and fat" Greg finished.

Dipper was familiar with the weight of peer pressure, and he was definitely feeling guilted out of his insistence on the investigation.

He sighed. "Alright. We might just have to wait for something to show up anyway." If the moth was already flying away from Beach City, a few more hundred miles probably made no difference. Dipper was starting to think that the moth was something of a white rabbit anyway.

Steven happily led Steven back into town, to the "Funland Aracde." The interior was illuminated by the flickering electrical lights, and a few teenage patrons milled about.

"Yup, our arcade is just like this one." Dipper said to Steven said as he took in the names and shapes of the machines. "But you don't even have classics like "Nort" here? I guess only the specifics are different in this universe…"

"Here it is!" Steven rushed over to a large machine in the middle of the arcade, a shiny display clearly not yet worn out by years of abuse. "I think they replaced "Meat Beat Mania" with this. Ha ha…" he sounded a tad embarrassed, and Dipper wondered what kind of story was behind the removal of "Meat Beat Mania."

Steven wasted no time inserting quarters and starting up the machine. Grating pop music blasted from the speakers, a fever dream of colors launching an assault on the eyes of anyone who looked at the screen directly. "Come on!" Steven called, already standing on the left dance pad.

Dipper was hesitant. As a rule, he stayed away from these types of games, preferring the button and joystick layout of games like "Fight Fighters." Nobody looked good playing these cheesy dance games, these were games you got the Thompsons of the world to play for laughs. And after a few supernatural disasters involving video games, he was wary of any game that seemed likely to bring bodily harm.

"Um, maybe we could play something else that's two player?" He yelled over the screaming game music. Steven jumped off of his pad and pulled Dipper unto the other one, who was glancing around to see if anyone was watching them.

"3, 2, 1… DANCE!" A barrage of arrows hurtled towards Dippers vision as he scrambled to get his balance.

"Steven, what the heck?! This song is way too difficult!" Dipper wailed.

"Whoops! I just picked a song I liked!" Steven was flailing his short stubby legs all around, missing every single arrow that scrolled up the screen.

Dipper settled for only hitting the left and right arrows, surviving the manic song for a in a 14% hit rate.

"Wow! You beat me!" Steven's score was 3%.

Dipper couldn't help it. He collapsed with laughter. "Hahaha oh man… We SUCK! Look at that! The machine is even telling that me that I'm at the "Lame" level." Steven was laughing too. "I'm "Hopeless!"

"Again! I'll pick an easier song this time… uhhh… which one do you like?" Steven was on a roll.

Dipper could feel the redness on his face, from exhaustion, embarrassment, and his sunburn.

"Ummm… that one! "A Humorous Real-Life Song Parody!" Ok?" Steven yelled.

"But that's still at the intermediate level?" Dipper yelled back.

"We will get better faster if we don't play the baby levels, right?" Steven replied.

"Ya know what, whatever!" Dipper cried. "Go for it! It's a good thing you healed my leg!""

The two boys monopolized the dance machine for all the minutes Greg's quarters could buy. Dippers body was starting to cramp up by the final round, but the adrenaline was more than enough to keep him going.

"FINAL ROUND! SYNC UP!" The machine wailed, indicating that the arrows for each of them would be exactly the same this round. At this point, they had reached the title of "Ok" for some songs. The music crescendoed for the final few arrows, ending with a double right/left jump. Steven threw his hand up for a high five as the song boomed to an end, and Dipper just managed to reach across the game pad to reply in kind.

A sudden burst of cheering snapped him out of his dance dance haze. He and Steven turned around, dazed, to see that most of the arcade had been watching them, including the arcade's owner. "We're famous!" Steven cried, grabbing Dippers shoulders and swaying, grinning as he soaked in the attention.

After pulling themselves back together, they left their dignity at the arcade and took what remained back home. A soft purplish blanket had settled over the town, which was already sleepy by 8' o clock.

Dipper was surprised. He expected to feel mortified by the fact that a group of strangers had cheered for his score of 31% on a medium level dance dance song. The cheering hadn't just for HIM, he thought, it was for Steven too. Steven, who thought a score of 14% was worth praise. Steven, who really was a lot like Mabel, in the sense that he didn't seem to care a lick what others thought of him.

"That was super fun, man." Dipper said. "Tell your dad thanks for the quarters."

**-8: Steven-**

Yawning, Steven stared at what Dipper had done the wall over night. He had taken all of the paper he could find in the house and covered a blank stretch of living room wall with it, and then filled it with notes and strings connected to nails and paper clips, papers taped together… Dipper had explained everything in detail to Steven, who didn't really follow but liked having someone to talk to anyway.

Steven had taken it upon himself to make sketches of everyone he knew on sticky notepads. Dipper had said it was good to have visuals when you where working with a lot of information. He'd fallen asleep on the couch before he'd drawn more than a couple, though… being a dance dance master at the arcade had been exhausting.

Dipper had obviously stayed up much later. Now he lay asleep on a pile of pillows and blankets and papers, a pen still dangling loosely from his hand. Steven got up slowly, not wanting to wake him. He crept to the kitchen to prepare a frozen breakfast in the microwave.

As he turned to bring the hot styrofoam plates to the couch, he was startled by Dipper, who had probably smelled the re-heated eggs and bacon and had shuffled over to the kitchen.

"Hahaha sorry it's just…" Steven tried not to laugh at the drowsy kids appearance. Pearl had kindly insisted on washing Dippers clothes that night, complaining that he stank. This meant that Dipper had to borrow Steven's clothes (after Pearl made _sure_ he showered), which were much too big for his rather skinny body. It was weird to see someone else wearing his signature red star shirt (of which he had many), the star sagging so badly that you couldn't even tell it WAS a star when Dipper was wearing it.

"I know" Dipper said, holding out the front of the shirt, "I look absurd."

"You can't stop Pearl when she wants to clean something." Steven said as the two of them sat down to eat.

"Well, I guess I shouldn't be mad that somebody actually WANTS to do my laundry for me." Dipper replied.

"You have to do your OWN laundry?" Steven gasped. "Well, ya." Dipper said, as if this was a normal and ok phenomenon. "Stan won't, Mabel won't, and I wouldn't want Soos to…"

Dipper had described the basics of his own family the other day. Being an only child, Steven was rather curious about Dipper's twin sister, and the idea of an uncle seemed appealing as well.

"Pearl better be back with my clothes soon." Dipper said between mouthfuls, "I laid out the plan for today last night, and we should go as soon as we can."

"First, we have to go back to where I came from. Way down the beach, away from the city. And I think that's about an hour walk," He gestured to some notes on the wall, "So if we go before the sun gets too high and it's really hot…"

Steven held up his pointer finger. "Wait. We don't have to walk. Because we've got… Lion!" he yelled. Dipper raised an eyebrow, but let Steven continue. "Lion! Lion! Lion…" Steven got up and ran outside. "LION!"

Steven had made some real progress in training Lion. He DID come when Steven called, just not right away. And not all the time. And sometimes not at all. But for Lion to take his time right now, when he wanted to impress somebody…

Annoyed, Steven stomped back inside. But then he noticed a huge fluffy head leaning over the railing where Steven's room was, his eyes half closed with that usual aloofness.

"Lion!" He said happily, raising his hands. "You where here the whole time!"

Lion leapt over the railing and landed with a THUD right in front of Dipper, sending a few papers fluttering from the wall.

Dipper head stood up, clutching his fork to his chest as the color drained out of his face. "It's ok!" Steven ran over, burying himself in Lion's lush pink mane and stroking him to show Dipper that Lion was tame.

"Wooo" Dipper tried to relax, blushing. "Scared me. Sacred me good. So let me guess, it's a magical gem lion or something?"

"Ya!" Steven was consistently delighted at how smart Dipper was. "And we can ride him along the beach. We don't have to walk!"

"Wow" Dipper breathed. "That is… actually really, really awesome."

Lion padded over to Dipper, leaning over the table and breathing in his scent. Gingerly Dipper reached out a hand and set it on Lion's velvety nose, awkwardly petting the beast. Lion helped himself to what remained of Dippers bacon, finally licking Dipper's arms and hands as the boy caught his breath; mouth hung open at the surreal sublimity of losing his breakfast to a giant pink lion.

"Aw, he likes you!" Steven declared.

"You sure he doesn't just like bacon?" Dipper asked nervously, but Steven knew. Lion and Dipper were friends now too!


	6. Chapter 6

**-9: Dipper-**

"Alright, Lion! Lets goo!" Steven cried, and the huge cat the two kids where sitting on took off like a shooting star along the shoreline.

Dipper gasped, wanting to call "Wait" but his brain froze his voice. Clutching Steven's cheeseburger back-pack with one hand and holding unto his hat with the other, the world swayed as Lion raced forward with huge leaps, turning Dipper's stomach.

"Haha, isn't this cool? You're the third person ever to ride Lion like this!" Steven cried.

The ride DID seem to get smoother as they continued. Dipper recalled the joy rides on the mystery-cart he had back home (well, some of them weren't really for fun) and began to actually enjoy himself. A magical Lion carried a certain mystique that a vehicle lacked; and Dipper had a sense that he was acting as part of something that wasn't for humans, a sacred event.

The wind raced through his hair as the sparkling ocean flew by, and he felt compelled to hoot a stereotypical "Wooohooo!" Steven joined him, and they felt the sheer exhilaration of the journey together.

As he relaxed, Dipper began to realize that he was forgetting the purpose of this excursion. "Wait!" he screamed as he began to recognize some of the rock formations they were hurtling by. "Stop here!" Lion's forward momentum was so strong that when he went to stop, he had to make a long, swift turn, nearly throwing his riders off.

"Oh my gosh, Steven, that was INSANE!" Dipper said, following Stevens lead as Lion sat down and the two kids slid to the ground. Dippers legs quivered and he sat down to get his bearings, still feeling a touch of nausea. "And I thought jumping the mystery-kart was daring."

"Mystery-kart?" Steven asked, seemingly unaffected by the rollercoaster he just stepped off of. "That sounds cool too!"

"Not as cool as that. Huh…" Dipper started to pace the beach, seeing if he noticed anything strange. "You see anything odd here?"

"There's a cool sea shell." Steven said, combing through the sand.

Dipper felt frustration crowding out the high he had caught during his ride over. There was nothing here. No sign of a struggle; no scuffs, no moth scales, no blood.

"The ocean washed everything away." He sighed. "And there's certainly no interdimensional portal here either." He gazed upwards towards the blue sky, mocking him with its normality. Had this trip had been a waste? He gave the sand a vicious kick; mind suddenly crowded by that fear that he would never get home again. "Hopeless" he muttered.

Steven was shuffling his feet and waiting by Lion, eyes downcast. It suddenly hit Dipper that Steven was upset too, just because Dipper was. This drove his mood down ever farther, and he was unable to find the words to lighten the mood.

"Let's go back." He sighed as Steven helped him hoist himself up onto Lion's back. "Ok Lion." Steven said as Lion began a steady trot, "Go a little slower this time."

"Sorry, man." Dipper said after a time. "You don't actually have to be involved with this. It was just an accident that you had the journal, and that I passed out and wound up at your house…"

"What are you saying?" Steven sounded incredulous. "You're my _friend._ I want to help you get home. And I love investigating around town! Also, because of you, I got my healing powers back! _And_ I got to play two-player dance dance!"

"Ok, ok." Dipper cut him off. He always said the wrong thing! Why was he trying to put Steven at a distance? "I'm just feeling a little discouraged. But I guess its nobodies fault."

"Why would it be anybodies fault?" Steven sounded honestly confused. "Wouldn't it be… the giant moths fault?"

_No, It's my fault._ Dipper thought, my fault for following that stupid journal into another world.

**-10: Steven-**

Eventually Lion had tired of carrying them, and dropped them off a short distance from the beach house.

"Uh… Dipper, what's the next part of todays plan?" Steven started, wishing his companion would perk up.

"Hmm, well, I actually wanted to talk to the gems and see if they knew anything. But they don't seem to like me very much so…" Steven was about to deny Dipper's assessment of the gems when they heard screaming.

"Hey, I think that's coming from the Big Donut!" Steven yelled, his horrified stare meeting Dippers. "Let's go!"

Steven recognized the voices of Lars and Sadie, cursing and yelling. But there was also a very high pitched screaming, a rather inhuman sound that made Steven prepared to find a gem monster assaulting his human friends.

"Lars! Sadie!" Steven cried, rounding the restaurant to find its employees cornered by something in the back lot, up against the wall with brooms in hand.

Steven strafed the conflict, not sure what offense he could muster up. It was a glowing white… caterpillar? But a caterpillar the size of a small dog, with blinding sparks shooting from its bright hairy body. These hissed as they hit the air, pulsating with an otherworldly light. The creature squirmed erratically, and the air around it seemed unstable, kind of like how the road looked when it got really hot.

"Steven!" Sadie cried.

"What IS this thing?!" Lars finished, swiping his broom as a spark from the creature landed close to his feet. He huddled closer to Sadie.

"I don't know!" Steven called. He'd seen some critters kind of LIKE it, but none that glowed like stars.

"What should we do with it?" Sadie called, clearly expecting the half-gem to know something.

"Uhhh…." Steven didn't honestly know. Should he go get the gems? But that was relatively far away… he couldn't abandon people in need! He was a crystal gem himself, wasn't he? He had to keep humans safe.

With a pang of anxiety Steven realized that Dipper was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he had run to the temple for help. Or maybe he had just plain run away.

"aaaaAHHHHH!" Steven, Sadie and Lars all gasped in amazement as Dipper dashed from the shadow of the Big Donut, carrying an outdoor folding chair behind him. Steven held his breath as Dipper lugged the chair over his head and, without hesitation, brought it crashing down on the sparkly caterpillar. And again. And again, until the poor thing was seized by feeble spasms just like a stomped earthworm might. Chest heaving, Dipper started to back away as a very loud, high frequency sound started emanating from the dying creature.

The air seemed to freeze, and time with it. An oppressive electrical static made the hair on Steven's entire body raise up, and as the volume increased a terrible pain screamed in his ears. Something was going to happen. Something bad.

Steven grabbed Dippers arm and yanked him over to where Lars and Sadie stood. He focused on how much his friends needed to live, how much they meant to him; high fives with Lars, how Sadie could smile even when she was sad, Dipper's appreciation for Garnet's pancakes. He reached for the strength he needed to be a shield.

The world exploded in light. Sheltered from this immense blast, Steven and his friends crouched behind the pink shield that Steven's mother had also wielded to save her loved ones from destruction.

As the dust settled and the sound of his ears ringing faded away, Steven slowly opened his eyes to see the stunned faces of his companions as they huddled together in mortal fear. Turning to see where the blast had originated, Steven could hardly believe what he witnessed next.

There was a hole in the air. Bright white light pulsed on the edges of a ragged tear about the size of a small tv screen, hovering above the ground where the caterpillar had been. It sparked and hissed a bit like the monster's body had. Entranced, all four survivors shakily inched forward as Steven lowered his shield, peering inside this anomaly.

It was the forest he'd glimpsed in a distant twilight on the beach. The light of midday showed through the hole, reflecting off the branches of spikey green trees. The sounds of birdsong floated into the world. Steven saw that Dipper had gotten exceptionally close to forest, and was reaching through the hole to grab hold of a branch.

"Wooooooah…" Steven whispered. As if his sound had broken some trance, the edges of the hole suddenly pulsed violently, and in an instant the edges yanked together with a loud hum.

Dipper jerked away with a gasp, and Steven thought for a moment that he was going to loose his arm. But he pulled his flesh clear of the vanishing strands of light, clutching a branch. Once connected to the tree in the other world, it was severed like butter under a knife as the hole closed around it.

Dipper was left swaying, clutching the end of a pine branch that belonged elsewhere, but yet, improbably, was here.

"It was Gravity Falls." Dipper breathed, his voice shaking. "This freaking branch… is from Gravity Falls!"


	7. Chapter 7

**-11: Dipper-**

Dipper paced relentlessly. He had laid out of the information he had in front of him; all his notes taken from the journal, his observations from the previous days, and most of all, the pine branch from Gravity Falls.

He felt Steven watching him from the couch, once again glad to have an audience. But if what he thought was true…

Dipper shook his head. They didn't have a lot of time. Plus, he had just almost died. He knew the caterpillar was a threat, but he had NOT expected it to explode. He wasn't sure what was going to happen next, he just didn't have enough _information._

He was suddenly yanked from these worries by the sound of the gems returning home via the portal. Finally.

Dipper seemed to forget the strategies he had planned for asking the gems questions as only a single gem approached. Pearl was heading right for him, her eyes narrowed with a fierce heat. The other two gems hadn't come with her. Dipper's mouth went dry.

Quick as a snake, Pearl reached up for the gem on her forehead and pulled a long spear right out of it. As if this gesture wasn't terrifying enough, the spear hissed through the air as the gem pointed the weapon straight at Dipper's throat.

Dipper faintly heard surprised protests from Steven, but they seemed miles away.

"Do you realize what you've done?" Pearl cried. When Dipper just stared, she continued, "You DO. I read everything you wrote" she swept her free hand out towards Dipper's notes, "and I know why you're here. Do you REALLY think that you can go back home and leave this universe to suffer? You should have thought harder about a way back before you came here."

"Wha- What?" Dipper croaked. "I have no idea… I didn't MEAN to come here! I don't know anything more… I… It was an accident! I didn't know what I was messing with! I just…" Tears burned in the corners of his eyes, followed by a painful tightness in his throat. He sniffed, his entire person devastated by fear and regret. Did Pearl's words have any truth to them? He focused his blurry eyes on the point of Pearls spear, wondering absently if she really would kill him.

"STOP IT!" A shadow passed in front of him, shoving the spear aside.

It was Steven, his arms flung open as he stood firmly between Dipper and Pearl. "What is WRONG with you?!" Steven yelled, his voice surprisingly commanding. Pearl recoiled, suddenly looking guilty.

The other two gems had arrived just as Steven had rose to Dipper's defense. They they rushed over, looking appalled by the scene in front of them.

Steven turned around to face Dipper, and Dipper was shocked to see that huge tears were in his eyes.

"Ahh-Are you ok?" He stammered, hastily crushing the tears from his face with his hands.

Dipper copied him, "Uh… ya, I'm not hurt or anything."

For a few moments the group composed themselves, intense emotions being brought under control.

"Alright." The calm voice belonged to Garnet. "We need to sit down and talk about this. And no threats this time." She added.

They all awkwardly shuffled over the couch, sitting in a ragged circle around the table that held most of Dipper's research. Dipper sat close to Steven, brushing shoulders with the only gem he could trust. He did not dare speak first.

"Okaaay… so uh, Dipper…" Amethyst began casually.

"Pearl," all eyes hung on the gem in question for a heated second as Amethyst continued, "thinks that you lead that giant interdimensional moon moth here so you could save your own universe from it. And now it's laying eggs somewhere, which turned into caterpillars, and if those suckers manage to pupate, and make more moths, it's gonna…"

"The infestation will eventually cause a large amount of abnormalities in the fabric of our reality, which will tear our universe apart a molecular level." Garnet finished.

Pearl finally spoke, her voice cold and smooth as it usually was. "The moth itself is a "non-dimensional being," meaning that, well, basically, it should always exist between realities and never IN them."

"The moth, it generates a powerful substance that is normally healthy for the multiverse as a whole. But if a lunamensional moth accidently ends up in a reality, it would end up destroying the reality it's in. Well, at least, that's according to gem theory, no ones tried to pull one out into reality before." Pearl gave a tense sigh as she finished speaking.

"And we've been seeing plenty of damage to reality ever since you showed up, kid" Amethyst finished.

Dipper blinked. Amazingly, what the gems had just told him cleared up a lot of the blind spots left by the journals documentation and his own research. "That's it." He said, "The moth was probably lying dormant in-between my world and THIS world! Something must have really agitated it and it woke up…!"

"EXACTLY!" Pearl stood up, and Dipper scooted even closer to Steven. "YOU must have done something…"

"Pearl, calm down. Right now" Garnet ordered.

Swallowing, Dipper knew he had to defend himself.

"Listen." He said, holding his voice as steady as he could. "I didn't know all that stuff you just told me. I had noticed an abnormality in my own world, and I investigated it. Normally it was just a flash that showed me a bit of this world, but the last time I went to see it…"

He wrung his hands "I had dropped my journal into the… flash, that's what I called it, but now I know it was a portal."

"I lost this journal" He pulled the book from his jacket "I went back to try and find it at the right time, but there was a monster there this time. A giant green moth."

He closed his eyes. "Then the moth made this huuuge hole in the air, and I could see the beach where my journal should be. I… thought I could go in and come back. But the journal had fallen through a different hole anyway, and I should have known that!"

Dipper gestured with his arms. "I jumped right through a giant mysterious hole in the sky that a huge moth made so I could find my journal. But the hole closed behind me, the moth flew away, and here we are."

He rubbed a bit of sweat from his brow, feeling very relived to have finally shared his whole story. "I'm really, really sure that I didn't WANT the moth here or anything." He glanced at Pearl.

"Dipper just wants to get home." Steven added.

The group sat in chilly silence for a few seconds, but Dipper was glad for it, gathering his thoughts before he found the right words.

"No." Dipper swallowed.

"I don't just want to get home now. I want to help you stop the moth if I can." Dipper's voice steadily gained confidence, he felt a little weak but he knew that he wouldn't say it if he didn't do so now.

"If I hadn't kept going to where it was, and messing with it, it would have never come to Beach City. Besides, it can go between worlds. It could still be a threat to Gravity Falls." Dipper took a breath, happy he could rationalize the emotional connection already felt for Beach City and the people in it.

"Dipper…" Steven was regarding him with sparkling eyes.

"Well, I don't see that there's much _you_ can do," Pearl muttered.

But Garnet clearly valued Dippers wishes, saying "We will use your help in any way we can. Knowing exactly how the moth got here has been a great help. Thank you, Dipper."

Dipper actually felt himself blushing at the gems praise. Garnet was his favorite.

The gems all stood up and disappeared together, speaking in hushed tones as they headed into the mysterious center of the temple. Steven watched them go intently.

Dipper shrank into the corner and sighed, trying to sort out his thoughts enough so he could begin to think again.

**-12: Steven-**

The sky was orange, rich and heavy as the last sunlight of the day kissed the smooth skin of the ocean. Steven and Dipper sat on the porch of the beach house, having allowed themselves a few hours to eat and recover from the drama of the day. The gems had been planning a strategy for combating the evil moth, but Steven had not been involved. Dipper's notes where the only other thing invited to their hidden meeting.

Steven looked at his friend, who was gazing over the sea with an occasional lick at the sherbet ice cream he and Steven where eating.

He was still hurt at the way Pearl had treated Dipper. He'd never seen her act so mean in front of a human like that. It was altogether embarrassing. He knew she was just really worried, but taking it out on a kid was just... confusing.

"Hey, Steven" Dipper said, still looking at the ocean, "Why don't the gems take you on missions? You're a gem too."

"I've gone on a few missions before, sort of… But they just want to protect me." Steven said, remembering how well those missions had gone.

"I get that." Dipper replied.

"It's kinda unfair though." Steven said after a pause, wanting to share his frustrations but also respecting the gems. "Even though I've proved that I'm good enough for a lot of stuff, and I've learned a ton, they still don't treat me like a real crystal gem most of the time." He took an angry bite of his ice cream.

"Well you seem like an awesome gem to me. You're more than good enough for a few missions." Dippers words were genuine, and Steven's heart soared at his words. "You're like, one of the cooolest friends I have now. Well… maybe not THE coolest…"

"Who?!" Steven insisted.

"Oh, just a girl. You know how it goes. I gave up on that, though. Losing battle." Dipper gave a sigh and a sideways glance, but Steven didn't really know what he was getting at yet.

"A friend who's a girl? My best friend's a girl! You should meet her." He replied excitedly, imagining how fun it would be the hang out with Connie and Dipper together. He wondered what Dippers friends where like, and if he could ever meet them.

Dipper had his chin on the table and was raising his eyebrows really high, like Steven was missing out on a joke or something.

"Well? Who's your "best friend who's a girl?" Something about Dippers tone made Steven slightly self-conscious.

"Connie." Here…" He pulled up some images on his phone, but suddenly a lot of them seemed kinda personal, and he made sure he picked a photo that didn't feel that way.

He held out a selfie he and Connie had taken on the beach.

"Look like you're having fun." Dipper said, raising up his finger to swipe some more photos. Steven felt like yanking his phone away, but he didn't want to be rude. "Wow." Dipper breathed. "You guys look really close. Why haven't you, you know…?"

"What?" Steven acted perplexed, but his heart was starting to pound.

"You know, _asked her out? _You already look like a couple in these photos. I don't believe that you don't like her."

Steven could feel his cheeks reddening. "Connies my _friend_?" he insisted, feeling dizzy with embarrassment.

Dipper grinned. "Sure. But you should go for it!" Steven noticed that Dipper was blushing too, and he raced to shift the topic off of dating.

"I'm gonna get more ice cream!" He called, heading for the house as the last of his sherbet slid to the floor. As he raced into the house, he noticed that the gems had gathered next to the portal. They must be ready to go.

"Hey! Aren't you guys gonna wait until morning?" He asked, although it was something of a rhetorical question.

"No, Steven, this is serious, and we are going now." Pearl replied as expected.

Steven stood in front of his family, kicking his feet. He actually wanted to go on the mission, but he knew they would never allow it. So instead he stalled, asking obvious questions about the moth and how the gems intended to fight it.

Suddenly he was interrupted. "Hey, crystal gems!" It was Dipper. He walked over to stand next to Steven, his fists balled up, forehead sweaty.

"You should…" He breathed deeply. "You should let Steven come with you."

"We had agreed-" Pearl began, but the Steven's amazement Dipper was having none of it.

"Steven's strong. He saved my life today. He healed my leg. He has a magical pet lion. And this is his world too. You need a shield; you should take him with you."

The gems seemed stunned into silence by the boldness of this tiny human, Steven among them.

"I believe in Steven." Dipper spoke with confidence. "And so should you."

Steven was so touched he could cry. He stumbled closer to Dipper, finally letting loose and giving him a huge bear hug. Dipper awkwardly patted his arm.

"Alright." Garnet spoke. "Steven, you can come with us. It's not like you haven't been on a high-stakes mission before."

"Wait, Garnet… this isn't like that… Pearl started.

But Amethyst cut her off and yelled "Alright Steven! Awesome speech, new kid."

"This is a mission of upmost importance. It will be dangerous. You have to promise to be as careful as you possibly can." Garnet lectured.

Steven already knew what she was going to say, and he _did_ realize how dangerous missions could be. The painful incident with Peridot and Jasper had taught him that.

"We're leaving right now, if you're coming. I'll brief you once we get there." Pearl stammered. "You-" she stared at Dipper. "You have to watch the Beach House for us. Actually, make sure you call Steven's cell phone if anything comes up. Number is in the kitchen." Pearl seemed really awkward addressing Dipper now, and Steven wished he could help them learn to like each other.

"I'm coming!" Steven cried, although he had stop himself from grabbing up his special backpack. This wasn't a mission suited for snacks!

The four gems stepped up onto the warp pad. Steven was exploding with excitement, even though he knew he should be equally nervous. There the four of them stood. Together. Ready for a mission to save the universe. The Crystal Gems! Wasn't this what he was born for?

He faced the beach house, noticing the picture of his mother on the wall. Was she proud of him? Scared for him? Then he glanced down and saw Dipper, who stood waving. Steven gave a huge grin and waved back, the aqua-colored light and cold heat of the warp pad enveloping him as he disappeared into the dangerous unknown.


	8. Chapter 8

**-13: Dipper-**

While he has very glad that his rash campaign for Steven's involvement in the mission had succeeded, Dipper found himself in a very lonely position as night fell upon Beach City. He was frankly tired of pouring over his notes, and the house seemed very spacious with only him in it. And he was far, far too nervous to sleep, or even play the video games he found in Steven's room. He was alone with his worries, having conversations with Mable in his head.

Dipper was sorting through a few books he had discovered when he noticed a steady, obtrusive hum. He shook his head, wondering if it was his ears ringing.

Then he heard a true ringing- the phone in the kitchen was going off.

"Um, hello?" He said after picking up Steven's smart phone, a bit glad that _something_ was happening.

"STEVEN! Why haven't you picked up your phone?! The town is going crazy! You know what's going on right? It has something to do with the stuff you mentioned yesterday, right? Right?!"

Dipper didn't really recognize the panicked male voice.

"This is Dipper. Who… is… this?" He asked tentatively.

"WhO?! This is Mayor Dewy! _Major_ of Beach City! Can I talk to Steven?"

"Steven isn't here right now. But sir" – Dipper was talking over the Mayor's rushed reply "I promise, Steven and the gems went to fix it, and everything should be ok in about an… hour? I- I know, yes, they are gonna take care of it. YES! THEY. ARE. ON. IT. OK?"

Dipper slammed the phone down. The mayor had been yelling about holes appearing in the air and chaos around town…

Without a voice screaming in his ear, the ambient ringing had grown much louder. Dipper turned slowly towards the source of the sound, curious.

The fireplace, or at least what should have been "the fireplace," was pulsating, just like the air around the caterpillar. Dipper tiptoed closer. The space was like a small cut on your skin, but in the air. It was a tear in the fabric of reality.

Inching closer, Dipper saw what he expected: Gravity Falls was showing through the tear. He could see the timberline and a night sky, but nothing specific. It was completely and utterly fascinating; if only it didn't herald the destruction of an entire reality.

He stood a good distance from the tear, waiting for it to snap shut like the one at the Big Donut had.

But minutes passed, and it remained open. To Dippers surprise, he heard another high-pitched hum start up somewhere else…

He walked to the door and opened it, taking a few steps but gasping as he nearly plunged his foot into another tear. This one was on the ground, a bit of concrete contrasted to the wooden planks of the beach house.

If this kind of stuff was popping up all over town… no wonder there was widespread panic.

"Oh man." Dipper said aloud. "Steven, you guys better hurry up."

**-14: Steven-**

As his eyes adjusted, Steven eagerly took in the area they had traveled too.

"Wooow!" Steven gasped. He recognized it! It was the island he, Lars, and Sadie had lived on for a while. It was covered with lush vegetation and plenty of cool hidden spaces. Steven was rather fond of the place, although this was the first time he had been really been back since his island adventure.

"Yes. Mask Island. " Pearl said. "Ok Steven, this is the plan. We learned from Dippers notes that the lunamensional moth should, in theory, prefer dark, isolated places such as caves. And we picked up the strongest energy readings from this island. It shouldn't take us long to find it…" The gems faced the deep blue vista of the ocean for a moment, reflecting stars. A cool breeze flowed through Steven's hair, calm before a storm.

"Lets go." Garnet ordered.

The three gems leapt gracefully down an embankment towards a beautiful pond where the islands great waterfall crashed down on its way to the ocean. Steven clumsily followed, his sandals skidding in the sandy earth, branches clawing at his clothing.

"Wait! What will we do when we find the moth?!" Steven panted, wishing they would slow down but refusing to verbalize his weakness.

Pearl spoke calmly. "We…" Her face twisted with worry.

"What?! What's the plan? You guys said you would tell me!" Steven whined, confused.

The rhythmic drumming of the waterfall was interrupted only by a bizarre humming noise. "Ugh what is that awful noise?" Amethyst sneered.

Pearl walked over to the waterfall, hands on her hips. "This sound… it's gotta be the lunamensional moth." The gems gathered in front of the waterfall, tensions rising.

Steven followed, frustrated. They still hadn't elaborated on the plan! They let him come on this important mission, but then they wouldn't even tell him what the mission WAS?

"Guys…" He began but Garnet shushed him. She stepped forward, and the gems followed.

To Stevens surprise, they passed right though the waterfall, vanishing behind the silver curtain of water. He held his breath, enchanted by the scene. Eyes closed, he rushed the water and broke through the other side with a gasp.

They found themselves in deep purple cave, the walls ripped with neon blue streaks. Steven held back an instinctive "woooow," knowing that they were hunting a monster in this wonderful place. The sounds of their own footsteps echoed a bit, the humming noise growing in strength as they walked deeper into the cave. The space opened up into a wider expanse after a time, but they seemed to have reached a dead end.

The gems stood in the middle of the space, illuminated by the glow of the bioluminescent rocks. Steven's amazement had almost made him forget about the questions he needed to ask about the mission. The gems paced about, wondering why the humming sound was at its loudest with no source.

Steven suddenly sneezed; a veritable supernova of a sound.

"Steveeen!" The gems hissed, but nothing really happened.

"Sorry" He whispered, sniffing. "It's just… it's dusty in here." He watched as Pearl held out her palm, catching a bit of the yellow dust that had made Steven lose control of his nose. Steven unfocused his eyes, following the movement of the specks. He turned his head to follow them up as they fell down.

He blinked at the darkness of the high ceiling, letting his eyes adjust. Staring intently, he began to notice a soft green glow somewhere up there… a creature, hiding in the dark, waiting…

"GUYS!" He exploded with the weight of his discovery, the Gems turning to face him furiously. "It's…"

He was cut off by a ferocious alien scream as the glow on the ceiling illuminated the whole cave. A giant moth crashing down on them, flapping massive emerald wings. Steven was in awe. It was really a giant moth! It had a chain of rings attached to each wing, and impressive false-eyes.

The gems wasted no time. Garnet lunged at the creature, smashing its tiny head with her massive fists. Steven thought that was more than enough to one-kit-ko the monster, but to his surprise a burst of silver light shoot out from the eye-like circles on the moths wings and hit Garnet square in the chest with a loud shriek.

Steven dashed over to her, ready to use his shield if he needed to, his heart racing.

Pearl and Amethyst darted forward, Amethyst using her thorn-studded whip to snag the creature out of the air as it attempted to fly away. Pearl made a smooth stab at its fuzzy chest with her spear, but the creature reared, and she caught its wings instead. They tore like paper, but the wound closed up instantly in a flash of white light.

The angry creature gave an unholy scream, so loud that it stunned every one of the gems. It shot beams from its wings wildly, sending rock scattering into the air. Amethyst struggled to keep it down.

Steven stood transfixed as the moth reared up as high it could go, brandishing its rings purposefully. Their ears still ringing from its supersonic scream, the gems watched in horror as it brought the end rings together. They began to hum and glow, and finally the moth then tore them apart violently.

Behind the creature, a huge near-perfect portal opened with a roar. Still bucking, the moth started to back into the dark forest that showed beyond the portal.

"Amethyst!" Steven cried, seeing that the stubborn gem was being dragged into the portal with her intended prey. He rushed over and grabbed her by the waist, joined by Garnet and Pearl.

"Let go!" Pearl cried.

With a snap she relinquished her grip on the whip, sending the moth tumbling into the forest it had conjured. As she did, the force ricocheted through the chain of gems, and they landed in a pile.

As Steven tried to get to his feet, he felt his fingers digging into the gravelly dirt. What was he-?

"STEVEN!" He heard the gems crying out for him, and realized in a panic that the portal wasn't passive.

It was drawing them all in with a magnetic force, and Steven was the lightest and weakest of the bunch. He felt himself lift off the earth, grabbing for the outstretched hands of his family. Garnet was digging into the wall, holding hands with the other two gems.

"Argh!" Amethyst, at the end of the chain, had managed to snatch his left foot. Steven stared straight into her shocked gaze, the sensation of his sandal sliding off his foot consuming his thoughts. Time chugged. Silver spots vibrated in the corners of his vision, and the terror on the gems faces seared into his memory.

_"STEVEN!"_ But Steven was gone, and the portal slammed shut behind him.


	9. Chapter 9

**-15: Dipper-**

Dipper hadn't meant to fall asleep. The worry that a tear would randomly open up through his body tormented him. There was no reason for a tear to NOT open up through an organic being, and if it did, he was sure it would end badly.

The sound of the warp pad has awakened him. He woke up quickly, anxious to see what the gems had accomplished. But the first thing he saw was the tear hovering over the fireplace, and his heart sank. If the moth was dead… shouldn't that be gone too?

Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst stumbled into the beach house. They had clearly been in a fight, cuts and scrapes all over their bodies.

"Where's Steven?!" Dipper cried, voice rising with concern.

He faced pairs of hollow eyes, and for a terrible moment the wounded gems said nothing.

Dipper's world swayed. No. That couldn't happen. It couldn't be true. "What happened?" He croaked.

"Steven… he…" Pearl started to speak, but her voice was choked back by tears. Dipper felt sick.

"He's NOT dead."

Garnet stood up straight, her voice confident. She looked straight at Dipper.

"Oh thank you." Dipper breathed, immensely relived to end that nightmare early. "But then why…?"

"He feel into the moths portal. Just like you did. I'm… pretty sure he's in your world now." Garnet said.

"WHAT?" Dipper gasped. "But then… the moth went into the portal too, right?" Garnet nodded.

"Then…" Dipper pointed to the anomaly on the fireplace. "What is THAT still doing here?"

"It must be because the source is still alive." Pearl said, talking low. "We originally thought that if we chased the moth back…" Her voice faded.

For a few seconds no one spoke.

Finally Amethyst moaned, "What are we gonna do NOW?"

"It's obvious." Dipper replied, slamming his hands together. If Steven was really in Gravity Falls... he may or may not be in immediate hoped against hope that Steven could find and recognize the Mystery Shack. "We have to get Steven back to his own world, kill that moth, and save both universes."

"But HOW?" Amethyst answered. "The moth isn't in our world anymore. How are we gonna save Steven if we can't reach him?"

"Well…." Dipper began, in truth not knowing what they should do.

It was his fault that they had lost Steven. He was the one who got Steven to go on the mission; if he hadn't, he would still be in Beach City. He had to make sure Steven came home. He hadn't properly thanked him for everything he'd done. Steven had given Dipper a home, health, and company in a strange new world. He had to see him at least one more time. To say thank you.

"Maybe we can use these tears that are happening. Also, apparently there is chaos in town; don't know if you guys would care about that… but it's another problem we've got." It felt a little odd to refer to himself and the crystal gems as "we," but so long as the cause of Steven's rescue united them, it was the only word that fit.

"Alright. Gems. Dipper," Garnet nodded to him. "Let's get started. We can't give up on Steven."

**-16: Steven-**

"AGGGGHHHHHH!"

Steven was suddenly falling through the cold night air at an alarming speed. He glimpsed stars before curling into a ball, feeling warmth in his gem as he pulled a protective pink bubble around his vulnerable body.

For a few long seconds he just fell, but finally landed with a slam, bouncing up again and finally starting to roll down a mountainside. Steven just focused on staying curled up, clutching his hands around his head and wishing the ride would end sooner rather than later. He faintly heard the snaps and crunches of the wilderness as it was bulldozed by his out-of-control ride.

At last the momentum was halted by a crushing SLAM. Steven stayed curled up, not yet ready to face what had just transpired. The bubble was safe.

After a time, he slowed his breathing and, shaking a bit, stood up, peering at the rose-colored world from behind his bubble. He wanted to call the gems names, but he knew how stupid that would be. He couldn't have still been on the island. He had a hunch of where he was; he only hoped he was right and not in some random, possibly hostile world.

A deep, tall forest reared about him. His bubble had come to rest on the massive trunk of a tree; they had to be pine trees. The darkness was oppressive, the sky not wide open as he was accustomed to.

He broke the bubble, feeling the cool mountain air on his skin. Everything here was different; the rich earthy smells, the height of the trees, even the color of the night sky.

It was Dipper's Gravity Falls. And he had fallen into it, just like Dipper had with Beach City.

The trees looked kind of like the ones on his hat, it had to be! He wanted to believe that. If Dipper lived here, then all the other people had talked about should live here too. Regular humans…

Steven got up and walked, because had absolutely nothing else to go on. He wasn't going to give up. Even though his gait was rather awkward without his other shoe, he spotted some light on the horizon and headed for it. It must have been a town, right?

That was all he could do; walk forward, spooked by his own feet snapping twigs and the occasional hoot of an owl. He tried to not dwell on the memory of the gems faces as the portal swept him away, of the stories Dipper had told him about monsters like evil gnomes or multi-headed bears that lived in the wilds of Gravity Falls.

He walked for quite some time, his energy draining fast. But hope come in the shape of a road, and beams of light through some trees up ahead.

He hurried over, stopping to analyze the situation. Before him lay a cabin in the woods.

A REAL cabin in a real woods, just like the one in that movie "Evil Bear 3." Soft light trickled from a small triangular window. But the most confusing part was the two huge signs on the cabin that said "GIFT SHOP" and "MUSEUM," pointing to the other side of the building. Some trash was in the yard around it, too.

He was heading for the front of the cabin when he noticed movement behind the window, hastening his motion to the front.

More signs guided him to the very front of the triangular structure, labeled on the roof as the "MYSTERY… HACK." Steven said aloud.

Steven couldn't make anything of it. Had Dipper mentioned this place? Dipper had told Steven a lot about Gravity Falls, and frankly he remembered more about the people Dipper had detailed and not the places. This didn't really look like a house where people LIVED anyway, it seemed like a store of some kind. Advertisements for tours were scattered around the area.

Steven saw a big dirt road with tire tracks running through it leading away from the weird cabin. If he followed that, he would be sure to find more people! Maybe even a city! He was impressed with himself. All alone and with no guidance at all, but he was managing like a real Lost Boy.

"Hey!" Light flooded the clearing as someone creaked open the door to the "Mystery Hack."

Startled nearly to tears, Steven whipped around to face whoever had noticed him. Had someone been watching him from that window?!

It was a young girl with long brown hair and a long sleep shirt. Steven walked closer, relived to see a normal person, even if the intense orange backlighting from the doorway made her seem a tad creepy.

"What're you doing…? The Shack is closed. Did someone actually leave you here? People these days…"

"No, I'm not from around… here." He replied clumsily. "I'm Steven. I'm from Beach City."

The girl stared at him. "Beach…?"

"Ya, uh, is this Gravity Falls?" He rushed, eager for answers.

Silence, finally "Yeeees?" the girl said through narrowed eyes.

He gasped. "Oh good!" Something was whirring in the back of Steven's brain. This girl… He came closer, studying her face carefully.

"Ok guy, do you need something?" The girl had metal on her teeth; braces, Steven recalled. The shape of her face, the round nose, those deep brown eyes…

It couldn't be.

"I mean, I'm all for staring into each other eyes, but let's get to know each first." She held up her hand to put distance between them, but she was smiling.

Steven was breathless. "Do you know…" the question seemed weird as he spoke it, but he couldn't stop now. "A kid named Dipper?"

Something magical happened to the girl's entire being.

"Dipper?! Do you know what happened to him?!" She screamed, grabbing Steven by the arms and holding his gaze with her wild eyes.

Steven leaned away. "Ya, he's my friend! You're his sister! His twin!" He cried, feeling a dizzy with the revelation. As a matter of fact, he felt a bit dizzy all over. It had been getting worse ever since he'd arrived.

"GRUNCKLE STAN! WAKE UP! COME OUT HERE!" The girl yelled into the house.

She turned back to Steven, who was starting to sway.

"Where is he? Where's my brother? He's been gone for days! He just disappeared!" The girl rambled. Hey, what's wrong with you? Hello?!"

Steven felt like a cloth was setting over his eyes and ears, blotting everything out. He didn't remember falling backwards onto the porch of the Mystery Shack, Dipper's sister crying out as she tried to catch his fall.


	10. Chapter 10

**-17: Steven-**

Steven woke up slowly. Something was messing with his hand… trying to… eat his fingers?!

"WAGH!" Steven jerked awake, his cry answered with a sequel from the animal that had been licking his hand. It was a pig! A tiny adorable pig.

"Whoooaaa!" Steven reached out to touch the animal, laughing as it trotted back over and nuzzled him with its soft snot.

He was soon distracted from the pig by his new surroundings. It looked lived in, posters on the wall and books on a table, a big painting of a ship, and another bed close to his own. He realized someone had just set him on this bed; he was laying on top of a ragged old blanket.

The events of the pervious night where still filtering into his mind when he heard voices downstairs. He was curious in spite of himself. He wanted to stay positive, and not get homesick, even though it was difficult to not miss Garnet's breakfast and the airy, bright interior of his own home in this dark little room.

He hopped off the bed and headed down the creaky stairs, the pig following him. He meandered through a hall and suddenly found himself in a very awesome place.

The whole room was filled to the brim with bizarre trinkets. Jars full of eyebrows, a weird spaghetti monster in a glass case, mounted singing fish on the wall, t-shirts with big question marks on them.

"Cooolll" He said aloud, and set about exploring everything he could. Other people milled about the shop, and they paid him no mind. Here, he could be the tourist. Although he didn't have shoes at the moment…

"HEY! You break it, you buy it." A gruff voice startled Steven, who was wrenching open a jar that had a plastic hand inside it.

"S-sorry!" He stammered, nearly dropping the thing in the process of returning it.

"WAIT, what?"

Steven turned to face the voice, which belonged to a crusty old man in a snazzy suit. He had an eye patch and a cane, which was immediately fascinating, although he was altogether somewhat imposing.

"You're that kid from last night! How the heck did ya end in the gift shop?"

"I just walked down here? I'm Steven!" He said, smiling. "Is this YOUR shop?" He asked excitedly.

"Ya, I'm Stan Pines and I'm the proud owner of the Mystery Shack. Glad you like it." The man spoke quickly. "But listen kid, we have some talking to do."

"Are you Dipper's uncle?! Wow! But where's Dipper's sister?" Steven asked, unable to stop himself from compulsively spinning the postcard rack that stood nearby.

"She was looking for a way to wake YOU up, but I told her to just wait. Stop doing that," He added, and Steven slapped his hands behind his back, embarrassed.

Stan opened a door labeled "employees only" and gestured for Steven to go inside. "Go wait in the living room, ok? I gotta make sure the Shack gets closed up."

"Am I an employee now?" Steven asked, not wanting to break anymore rules.

"For pete's sake kid, just go. Soos," Stan gestured to a large man in a green ? shirt who was fiddling with a display. "Escort him."

A loud squealing followed by a commotion sent Stan running away, yelling "He let the pig down here?!"

"I'm Soos!" The man in the green shirt waved to Steven, giving an amused glance at the excitement behind him. "You're the kid who knows where Dipper is? The Beach kid?"

"I'm Steven Universe!" Steven announced.

"Whoa, is that like your real last name?" Steven nodded. "That is so cool dude! I want a last name like that!"

Soos seemed friendly, carrying on causal conversation with Steven as they found their way to the small living room. He even brought over a bowl of chips. Steven was certainly lost, but these people needed him, and he felt surprisingly secure.

"Wanna watch some TV while we wait?" Soos picked up the remote.

But Steven quickly replied "No, I'm grounded. For 1000 years." He sighed.

"Whoa, get a load of this kid!" Soos laughed, turning on the TV anyway. "Being grounded from TV pretty much means only your own TV, because you're parents won't know if you watch it at another persons house! Relax, dude."

Steven was still looking away when another person joined the party.

"Hey kid. How'd you like the Mystery Shack?" A red headed teenage girl with a flannel shirt sat down with them, and Steven gave his usual "Hi! I'm Steven Universe!"

The girl was tall and rather pretty; Steven wondered if she was another relative of Dippers or just a friend.

"I'm Wendy. Do you… really know where Dipper is?" She asked, sounding concerned.

"Uh…" Steven started, but Soos stopped him "Wait for Stan and Mable. We all wanna hear this."

It wasn't long before the two remaining people made their way to the circle in the living room. Stan had changed out of his fancy outfit, and with some disappointment Steven noticed that his eye patch had been removed.

Mabel gave Steven a great big stare when she came in, asking him if he was all right. He assured everyone that he was indeed fine. He found that he rather enjoyed having these strangers be so concerned with him, and meeting new people always made him happy.

Although he wasn't sure what he could say to them. How could he explain the truth? Did gems even exist in this world? Probably best if they thought he was a normal human for now…

"Alright kid. Where in the world is Dipper?" Stan asked, sitting in the main easy chair, and all eyes in the room where on him.

**-18:Dipper-**

The gems had tried very, very hard to escape the beach house without Dipper. But Dipper had refused to be left out, invested as he was in their mission.

"Look out! It's gonna blow!" He yelled, as the caterpillar started to glow just the pervious ones had.

With a jolt, Garnet grabbed him and leapt away, lifting him clear of the explosion.

The gems and a couple of civilians surveyed the damage. A trash can on the dock was simply gone, but other than that, nothing had been harmed.

"That was INSANE! This is going straight on my blog!" A big curly headed guy had filmed the entire ordeal with his phone.

"What the HECK, Ronaldo, the shop could have been destroyed! Why are always worrying about that blog at times like these?!" The young kid who had refused Dipper water was the one had altered the gems to the caterpillar, which had been hanging out near his restaurant.

They basically become a extermination service; running all over town and crushing any moth caterpillars they could find. Dipper found that he loved to watch the gems fight. They were interesting as it was, but when they made a motion to fight, it was truly extraordinary.

"Are you guys ok?" Dipper approached the fry kids.

"I guess." The young one muttered, and they meandered back to their jobs.

Dipper frowned. The people here didn't seem appreciative of how the gems kept saving them. I mean sure, they destroyed some property, but the alternative was so much worse…

He heard screams farther down the boardwalk, and the gems rushed over to the source of the commotion. An elderly woman stood ineffectually smacking a caterpillar with a broom, keeping it out of a pizza shop that must have belonged to her. She was surrounded by a rowdy group that was cheering her own.

"Be gone, you devilish thing! Yeesh!" She cried as the worm reared up.

"Lady, be careful!" Dipper yelled.

Without a word, Pearl leapt gracefully through the air, skewering the creature and tossing it like wasted bait into the oceans horizon, where it exploded like a firework.

Dipper stood with his mouth open, "oooing" with the rest of the human crowd.

"Nice one, Pearl! Style points." Amethyst was never serious, and seemed bored by how weak her enemies had been.

"Let's move on, shall we?" Pearl said. "We need to get every last one of these things. What a chore…" Apparently Pearl was bored too. Dipper was far from it; without the strength of the gems safely taking out those caterpillars would have been a monumental task.

"How did you guys get so strong?" He enthused as they continued their search, straining his short legs to keep up with them.

"We're thousands of years old. That helps." Garnet answered, and Dipper was floored. "But Steven said he was only twelve! Will he live that long too?"

"We don't really know." Pearl sounded uncharacteristically unsure. "Steven is… unique."

"Because his father is a human!" Dipper couldn't stop asking questions, as he had been all day. "Then his mother was a gem! Where… is she? Is it one of you?" He realized too late that this could be an awkward question.

The gems shook their heads, and a shadow descended over them. Dipper realized he had indeed asked one of THOSE questions.

"She's gone, kid." Amethyst replied, tonelessly.

"Oh. Sorry." Dipper pulled his hat down over his eyes.

Steven seemed to have managed to be a super happy, well-adjusted kid even without a mom. "You guys are his family. That's more than good enough..." He stammered.

"I see one!" Amethyst cried as they rounded a corner, pulling a fantastic thorn-studded whip from her gem. Dipper perked up, eager to see how this fight went down. Steven really did have an exceptional family.


	11. Chapter 11

**-19: Steven-**

Steven held tightly to the chair underneath him, bouncing wildly as Stan's big red car tore through the woods and up a mountain. Steven had wanted to ride the mystery-cart, but they wouldn't all fit.

"What're we gonna find up there?" Stan asked, glancing back at Steven, Dipper, Wendy and Mabel, all crammed into the back seat of the cart. Somehow Soos had gotten the passengers side. Steven studied his new shoes; sandals from the shop that had little question marks on the fabric near the toes.

"I'm not sure. But… it's the only clue we have right now." Steven was just copying what Dipper had done by returning to the scene of his arrival. He didn't have a book to help him and he knew he wasn't smart and clever like Dipper or Connie. But he had to give everyone SOMETHING to go on.

Earlier he had stumbled over explanations of his world and the portal, and found that the group was actually pretty receptive of his story. They seemed used to the unusual, and they didn't once accuse him of lying.

But the best part had been when Steven had used his phone (he hadn't lost it in the fall, somehow) to show them some photos he had taken of Dipper. Originally he had sent them to Connie to explain what was going on the past few days through texts, but he hadn't realized how important they would become. Any doubts about Steven's claim to know Dipper vanished with the evidence.

He glanced over at Mabel, who also seemed preoccupied with her shoes. She had nearly cried when she saw the photos of Dipper. Watching her made Steven wonder what it was like to have a sibling, and he could imagine how much it hurt to lose that person. He also saw why Dipper had wanted to go home so badly. He had this huge family full of people who loved him! Also his house was a super-cool gift shop, and he even had a pet pig.

"Woooah, stop! Look at that!" Soos pointed to a swath of destruction that had become visible through the tree line on the road.

Steven swallowed. In the light of day, the damage his roll through the mountainside had caused looked pretty intense. A huge tree was leaning over; it must have been the one that halted his descent.

How could he explain this without either lying about his gem powers… or telling the truth? Would he be welcome in Dipper's family if they knew he wasn't totally human?

The group parked and wandered from the car, venturing towards the wounded patch of forest.

"Hey, Mabel," Steven leaned forward, grabbing the long sleeve of her rainbow colored sweater as the others moved away. "C-can I tell you something first before I tell the others?"

"I'm honored." She said with relish. "What is it?"

Steven lifted his shirt and displayed the rose quartz gem on his belly. "I'm a crystal gem. I- I'm not a normal human." He stammered, feeling unusually self-conscious about his heritage in this new world.

Mabel's mouth was hanging open. "Whaaaat! This is cray-cray!" She looked at Steven's gem with awe. "May I?"

"Huh?" Steven said, but Mabel helped herself, gently touching his gem. "You body is bedazzled!"

Steven laughed. "Anyway, um, I rolled down the mountain in a bubble, so that's why…"

"Like a giant hamster ball? OHMYGOSH!" Mabel cried.

"You… wanna see?" Steven asked, excited. "DO I!" Mabel answered, and Steven brought a pink bubble up around both of them with ease.

Mabel started walking into the ball, rolling it towards the others. "I've always wanted this." She whispered. "You made my dream come true."

Her bubbly, carefree excitement was nothing like Dipper's typically reserved and thoughtful demeanor. Steven helped her roll along, no longer overly worried about how his new companions would react to his powers. He'd actually never seen humans react so enthusiastically to his gem powers before!

Soos and Wendy gave cries of alarm, rushing over to investigate. They all seemed impressed once they saw what Steven could do, but most importantly, none of them seemed afraid.

"Dude! Can I have a turn?" Soos begged.

"What else can you do with those powers?" Wendy asked, tapping the bubble. "Can everyone in your world do this?" Steven indulged very last question, basking in the undivided attention. He couldn't remember ever making so many friends at once.

Stan Pines watched the kids play from a distance. "Unbelievable. He's some kind of freak."

He muttered quietly. He gazed upward; no sign of a portal here. But that kid was solid proof of other universes, and that people could travel between them. Somewhere out there, in that infinite multitude of realities, he had people he needed to find.

**-20: Steven-**

_"More glitter!"_

Steven and Mabel had turned the twin's little bedroom upside down with a tornado of craft supplies; stickers, paint, glue sticks, scraps of fabric. Mabel had decided she wanted to make Steven a super-hero outfit after learning that he had "super powers." It didn't pertain to getting Steven home or anything useful, but they were all out of clues anyway.

"Wow, Mabel, you have sooo many stickers!" Steven gasped as he flipped through Mabel's rather large sticker collection. "Puffy stickers…" He ran his hand over them; feeling honored by this veritable sticker royalty. Mabel was cramming as many bows as she could fit into his thick hair as they sat on Dippers bed.

"Do you like the big pink one, or two of the small glittery ones?" she asked, and Steven "hmmmed" for a while before declaring "Both!"

"Great choice." Mabel had fashioned him a cape and bedazzled a new pink shirt (she had even painted on a yellow star; Steven wanted to keep that part of his outfit). Steven was amazed at how much she knew about art and fashion. And no one was making them go to bed! It had to be at least 11 at night already! And he hadn't even showered!

He turned his head back to face Mabel. "Do you and Dipper get to stay up and hang out like this all the time?"

Mabel rolled her eyes. "Well, sometimes. But Dipper would never let me design an outfit for him! Well, at least he wouldn't WANT me to."

"I like Dipper's hat." Steven said, wondering absently about what people wore. "His clothes are… right for him."

"Do you really want dorky a hat like that?" Mabel asked, "I think we still have some in the gift shop."

"No waay!" Steven DID really want a hat like that! "But… would I be copying Dipper too much?"

"I'll see if I can find one so you can try it on. No way it's gonna be part of your costume though."

As Steven sat waiting for her to return, a strange noise that he and Mabel's chatter had drowned out before crept into his brain. It almost like… voices? He stood up, suddenly freaked out. The voices where so familiar… was that…

"Pearl?!" Steven cried aloud. "Amethyst? Garnet?" He spun around, bewildered. Had the gems found a way HERE? He listened hard for a reply, but everything had gone quiet. Was he going crazy?

NO! He heard Dippers voice too!" "HELLO?" He yelled, hoping his own universe could somehow hear him.

"Hello?" Steven nearly tripped over his cape as a voice replied. It was Mabel, standing in the doorway, regarding him with caution. "Are you really tired or something? Are you gonna pass out again?"

"No, Mabel listen! I hear voices from my own world! Dipper's voice too! C-mon" he lowered his volume, and Mabel stood with him as the two strained their hearing to the limit.

_"where is it coming from? did it stop?"_ Distant voices echoed into the room, and Mabel's eyes widened into saucers. "oh my gosh" she whispered. "what the heck is going on?"

"it sounds so close but… far away?" Steven said, and the two spread out, trying to find a source.

Mabel opened both closets and Steven peered under the bed. They could still hear the voices, and they seemed to be getting louder.

_"GUYS! Come over here!"_ It was Dipper! He almost sounded like he was in the room!

"The closet!" Mabel screamed, tearing clothes and toys and junk away from the interior of her closet. "Ohmygooood!" She howled, stumbling away as a pair of eyes blinked out from the darkness.

There was a small tear in the back of the closet, and someone was looking out of it.

"MABEL! It's me! Dipper!"


	12. Chapter 12

**-21: Dipper-**

Dipper was stunned. This tear had opened up, simultaneously, in both Mabel's closet and the gem's fridge. He and the gems had tracked the source of the voices to the interior of the fridge, where the tear had cut some old macaroni in half.

"DIPPPPER!" The sound of Mabel's voice was surreal, and his heart soared with joy. "Why are you in there? Come out!" His sister cried.

The hole was about the size of a crumbled piece of lined paper, and Dipper could see movement within it.

"Whoa! Be careful Mabel, it's not-!" But Mabel's hand shot through the tear, her fingers grasping. Dipper grabbed her hand, and for a moment the twins clung to each other across realities, feeling closer than ever but still eternities apart.

"Mabel, you can't." Dipper said, slowly pushing her arm back through the portal. "It's not safe, you could lose your arm." As he pushed into the Gravity Falls reality, he felt static run across his skin. Right now, part of him was in Mabel's closet, but the rest of Dipper was being chilled by Steven's open fridge.

"Can I have a turn?" It WAS Steven! He was not only ok, but he was with Mabel in the Mystery Shack! Was this tear even an accident?

Steven's face floated bizarrely in the fridge, and Dipper saw his eyes glow with the sight of Dipper, Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst squatting around the scene with wonder. Water gathered in Steven's disembodied eyes.

"Guuuyss…" He blubbered. "I didn't know… If I would…"

Dipper backed out of the way as the gems rushed forward, all comforting the lost child. Dipper wanted to tell them to stop putting their darned hands through the portal, but who was he to stop Garnet from reaching in and tousling Steven's hair? He was starting to see the gems as Steven's weird aunts, and they loved him just as he loved Mabel; as family.

"What IS this thing?" Steven asked through the portal, taking turns with Mabel to peer through the fridge.

"Well, it's obviously some kind of wormhole that connects both universes. It's not the first one." Pearl seemed refreshed, having seen that Steven was alive and healthy. "I don't know how and why it connected US like this, but I'm not going to look down on cosmic luck at a time like this."

"Seriously." Dipper agreed.

"Hey, why don't we just shape shift and go in there?!" Amethyst sounded eager, but Dipper had to stop them. Even if they could shape shift so dramatically…

"Wait." Dipper stood up in front of the portal. "I think it's bad for you to go through these portals. We don't want you guys getting trapped on the other side forever. These things are unpredictable."

"I have to agree." Dipper was surprised to hear Pearl's voice supporting him. "Steven, honey, can you shape shift into something really small and come over here?"

Long pause. "Ummmm…" Dipper felt somebody touch his back from the portal, and he swatted at it, complaining.

"Seriously, stop doing that!" He yelled, and Mabel's laugh answered him, and he felt that same happiness he had when he'd first heard her voice through the portal. For the first time since this adventure had started, events seemed to be working out in his favor.

"Perhaps if we look elsewhere, we can find a tear large enough for you two to fit through." Garnet said, arms crossed as she thought about the situation.

"But… we won't know where to look. So far, there's no real reasoning behind where these appear." Dipper said, also trying to quickly whip up some ways to use this new knowledge to their advantage.

"Then let's just look all over!" Amethyst threw her arms up. She was always very animated whenever she said anything. And maybe she was right.

"We have the lunamesionalmoth to worry about, ultimately." Pearl was wringing her hands together.

"You should look for a bigger hole AND the moth!" Mabel cried.

"Mabel." Dipper answered, "YOU should look for the moth. It's on your side of the portal, wormhole, whatever. Have you been able to find anything?"

"No." The sigh belonged to Steven. "We went back to look for it, in the place where we came from, but…" Dipper could see some of Steven's head through the portal, and his hair was exploding with pink bows. Glitter sparkled all over his thick brown head.

"Mabel, what did you DO to him?" Dipper muttered to himself. He was very glad that Steven seemed at home in Gravity Falls, even so.

After a time, they all decided that they would scour their respective towns for both inter-dimensional wormholes and the moth that had created them. The gems took off almost immediately, much to Dippers frustration. They appeared to have no need for food or sleep, on top of everything else they could do.

Dipper knew that time was running shorter every second; that as the tears between the universes multiplied they would eventually shred both realities. Even if they managed to squash every last caterpillar in town, the problem would persist if the mother lived on.

Be he was plain exhausted. And even though he wanted to keep up with his super powered alien team… he couldn't deny the magnetic appeal of the voices from beyond the portal. He unplugged the fridge, grabbed blanket and a melting bowl of ice cream and made himself a space in the fridge. He discussed adventures with Dipper and Mable until all three of them started to fall asleep, curled up next the portal, as close to "together" as they could manage.

As he was nodding off, something important suddenly jumped to the forefront of Dipper's mind. "Hey, Steven?" He asked softly, not wanting to wake Mabel if she was asleep.

"Uhhh hey, Dipper?" Steven's voice was cloudy with exhaustion too.

"Thank you." He closed his eyes, feeling relived. "Thank you for helping me so much when I first came here."

"It was no problem." Steven replied. "Thank you for believing in me." Dipper felt a tap on his head, and saw Steven's hand through the portal. What did he-? Dipper raised his own hand tentatively, and to Dipper's awe they gave each other a tiny high five across time and space. Everything would turn out alright.

**-22: Dipper-**

_Knock knock knock_

Dipper groaned. What was that? He woke up and realized he was inside an open fridge. Thankfully he quickly remembered why. The portal was still there, too.

He got up and walked to the door, where someone clearly wanted in.

"Steven?" A young girls voice sounded from beyond the beach house door.

Dipper opened the door to reveal a dark haired girl, wearing a light blue and white sun dress and big red boots. She seemed familiar… that's right! She was the one from the photos; Steven obvious crush.

"It's you! Your name is something weird… something with stars… Little Dipper, or something? Is Steven here?" She asked, peering past Dipper and into the house.

"Hey! How'd you know about me? Also it's just Dipper, thanks." The sound of that lame old nickname made him blush.

"Steven sent me those photos of you. He told me about how you're from another universe and all that. Pretty crazy." She sounded only slightly impressed.

"WHAT photos?! He didn't tell me he had any photos of me! Show me!" Dipper demanded.

"Sure. If you tell me where Steven is. I haven't heard from him in over 24 hours! Is he ok?"

"CONNIE?!" Steven's voice squeaked through the portal. "I'm here!" Steven's hand waved through the portal. Connie rushed into the house.

"What?! Where are you?! Steven what happened? Why are you in the fridge?" Connie held Steven's hand through the portal with her own. "I was worried! I'm still worried. Where… is this one of those portal things?"

Dipper still wished people would stop doing that, as touching as each reunion was.

Steven, Dipper, and Mabel all explained the recent days events to Connie, who listened carefully, both thoughtful and worried.

"Wow." She said after a time. "Do you think the gems will be able to beat that moth monster? I've heard about the portals and worms popping up in town… but I didn't know it was this serious! Though it was just, ya' know, gem stuff."

"I'm sure they will!" Steven said through the portal. "But we should still help them if we can."

"But… how?" Connie sighed, bringing her arms around her shoulders. "I'm sorry, Steven, I wish I could be more useful in situations like this."

Dipper had started to pace, mind whirring again as he struggled to face the "situation." Where had the gems gone _now?_ It must drive Steven crazy to have to live with people who never told you where they were going for hours at a time… all while the world was ending…

Faintly he overheard Steven explaining his ordeal, repeating the part about how he passed out in Mabel's arms.

"Wait a minute." Dipper said. "You passed out a few hours after going through the portal. So did I. I've been wondering about the portals effects on the body… but who would volunteer as test subject for THAT?"

"Hmmm... maybe we shouldn't worry about organic life yet." Connie said, focused. "We might be able to test out the effects of the portal on matter without using live test subjects. It'll be more practical, ethical, and cleaner."

"Okay… how?" Dipper asked, intrigued at how quickly she had apparently solved the problem.

Connie grabbed a piece of paper from a notepad, scribbled something on it, balled it up and passed it through the fridge portal.

"Ok, please, please stop sticking your hands through that, when it gets cut off you can't say I didn't warn you." Dipper whined, unable to hold that thought back any longer.

"Pass it back. That's all it says. What're you getting at, Connie?" Steven replied, and, to Dipper relief, tossed the paper instead of passing his hand through again.

"You." Connie was gesturing to Dipper, handing him the notepad and a pen. "Keep track of how many times the paper passes through the portal." Without skipping a beat, she tossed the paper back to Steven.

"Why are we playing catch?" It was Mabel, who threw the paper back. Dipper rushed to record three tick marks.

"Because this way we can find out if matter can withstand repeated travel through the wormhole! We can find out just how many times it takes before anything changes, if it all. This is great!" Dipper cried, distantly frustrated that he hadn't come up with it himself.

"Thanks." Connie said briskly, running a hand through her long brown hair.

They played inter-dimensional catch for about fifteen minutes, and Dipper was starting to get bored. He was about to ask for a turn as catcher when he heard a cry form the other side of the portal.

"It's crumbling!" Mable cried. "A piece fell off… ugh, it's dusty."

"Throw it back!" Dipper yelled, and as she did, the paper fell even further into dust. After a few more throws, it was reduced to ash, sprinkled over the interior of the fridge and closet.

"It's gone." Dipper said, stunned.

"How many throws did it take?" Connie grabbed the paper from Dipper. "256… that's… a lot, I guess. And it was only a piece of paper. Would a live animal be able to withstand more or less…?"

"But this means that going back and forth with the wormholes will eventually break down matter. It means the portals are not safe, like I thought. Maybe you pass out the first time, but what about the second time? Or the 100th time? Bleed from your eyes? Have a stroke? Dissolve into nothing?!"

He was pacing again, hoping that he and Steven were not already permanently damaged by their travels.

As if answering his thoughts, Steven called tentatively "We only went through once… It should be ok to go through one more time." He was always trying to make people feel better. It was really nice, but not very helpful.

"What about the moth?" It was Connie, of course. "You said it's from an in-between space and doesn't belong in our realities. Surely, traveling between universes is hard on it as well?"

Dipper was in shock. He had been so preoccupied with worrying about his own life that he had missed the most essential part of this discovery.

"That's IT!" He yelled. "That's how we can kill the stupid moth! We have to find a way to keep chasing it through the portals, until it breaks down like the paper did! The gems need to hear this!"

"Steven, your girlfriend is totally brilliant!" He ignored Connie's surprised blush, already focused on sketching out battle plans. "Now we have a way to win!"


	13. Chapter 13

**-23: Dipper-**

Dipper had decked out the wall with notes, instructions, and helpful illustrations (curtsey of Steven and Mabel) and now he was standing in front of a couple of expectant gems, ready to tell these adult aliens how to fight this battle. But he had to remind himself that wasn't alone. He had Connie, standing next to him, and Steven, Mabel, Stan, and even Soos and Wendy listening in from the portal. The thought of all those people crammed around a hole in a closet was hilarious. Focus, Dipper! Focus.

"Ok…" He sighed, starting into an explanation of how they had discovered the "wormhole degradation effect," and how they could use it to defeat the moth. Connie helped him along. So did the clarifying illustrations.

"That's all very nice." Pearl said tersely after he had finished, "But how, exactly, will we be able to chase the moth back and forth? We have no idea how to locate it quickly."

"I KNEW you would say that!" Dipper announced theatrically, because he knew by now that Pearl would be the first to spot any holes in the plan.

"We have… THIS!" He held up a present Grunckle Stan had so generously procured when bothered. It was a GPS tracker, and Dipper needed it too much to ask Stan about why he would own such a thing.

"You're welcome." Stan called gruffly through the portal, and the gems shoot a few disturbed glances at the sound.

"If we can get this unto the moth, we can track it through the portals using smart phones. Luckily, Connie and Steven both have one. I've loaded the software and all that onto them already. We even tested it to make sure the portal doesn't break it quickly. We have to get the tracker on the moth, and do everything we can to chase it back and forth between the worlds as fast as we can."

"Do you really think that'll be so easy?" It was Pearl again. "What if that moth appears across the WORLD? We won't be able to reach it for days. And by then, it'll be too late."

"Well…" Dipper said. "So far, the moth has stayed local. I think it's trapped locally, actually, or it should have gone elsewhere already. But if what you say is true, then ya, I guess this won't work" He conceded.

"Also…" Amethyst this time. "We don't know where the moth is. And it's in your world, not ours. And who's gonna fight it over there?"

For a moment no one said anything. "Uh, that's your cue over there!" Dipper called to the portal.

"Oh! Oh ya!" Steven called. "You're wrong because we DO know where the moth is!"

"And you're also wrong because we CAN fight monsters "over here!" Mabel added.

Dipper stood staring at the gems, the initial high of his informed speech fading into anxiety.

"Sooo uh, is this an ok plan? They go look for the moth, we track the moth, and chase it back and forth until it dissolves or whatever…?" His voice was losing confidence fast.

Garnet stood up. "It's the best plan we've got. We should do it."

The other two gems followed. "Ok. We'll see how this goes." Pearl said nervously. "I'm cool." Amethyst was always cool.

"Ok guys," Dipper said, his pulse racing, "Operation Green Flash is go!"

**-24: Steven-**

Steven held his breath, standing shoulder to shoulder with the Mystery Shack crew as they faced the moth's lair. In front of them stood a small restaurant called the "Greasy Diner." Groups of voyeuristic citizens milled about behind rolls of "caution" tape.

"Alright kids. Are we ready for this?" Stan asked, and Steven was the first to reply with "Yes, Gruncle Stan!"

"Kid, I'm not your uncle." He grumbled. Stan was grumpy, but Steven liked him anyway. He had been very helpful with Dipper's plans, and now he was going to help them fight the moth too!

The entire group walked carefully up to the diner, and to Steven's surprise, the door creaked open when Stan approached it. Steven heard that same familiar humming noise that had echoed through the crystal cave. A shudder of apprehension passed through him. What if someone got sucked through the portal again?

"Hey." Someone whispered in his ear, "You ok?"

It was Mabel. Steven was embarrassed; was he not a crystal gem?

"It's just… we need to be careful." He replied. Hearing Dipper explain it, the plan seemed so simple, so neat. But nothing ended up being simple… and if the gems couldn't beat the moth, what chance did this group stand? But they didn't have to "beat" it…

As his eyes adjusted to the dark of the diner interior, appealing smells of breakfast still in the air, Steven watched as everyone's heads turned upward. He felt a trill of joy; he'd told them about how the moth had ambushed the gems from the ceiling, and they wouldn't be fooled by that trick again.

There it was. Glowing green, wonderful emerald wings resting against the wood ceiling, bushy antennae twitching. He saw the dart gun in Stan's hand as he slowly raised it, aiming steadily at the massive insect, which was so far ignoring the group of people.

"HEY! No civilians allowed in here!" Voices blasted behind them. Two policemen stood angrily at the open door.

"Dang it all to heck!" Stan "cursed," as the moth roared to life at the all the noise.

A blast of silver nearly cut Steven in half, who gasped as Soos snatched him out of its trajectory.

"No way!" Wendy was swinging an axe, an altogether awe-inspiring sight. She slung the weapon with a grunt, and everyone watched in rapture as it narrowly missed the moths torso and pinned a wing to the wall.

"Hit it now, Stan!" Mabel was screaming, holding her hands over her head as they were showered with silver blasts and the ear piercing screams of the moth.

Stan was on his butt, raising his weapon again. Steven called a bubble up around himself and Soos, fearful a stray beam would strike them. The others were too far away… his heart pounded as he watched Stan focus his eyes and steady his aim once again…

The gun gave a sharp hiss as it launched a dart fitted with the gps tracker towards the moth.

"Heck YES!" Soos yelled as the tracker embedded itself deep within the moths furry chest. The creatures wing tore painfully as it pulled clear of the axe, the wound closing up swiftly just as it had when Pearl wounded it. It started to scream, and Steven mind rocked with recognition of the cry.

"EVERYONE! We hafta leave! Now!" He howled over the moths agonizing cacophony. Soos held Steven under his arm as they all fled the diner, dodging silver beams along the way.

The restaurant glowed with an unearthly white light as the moth opened up its perfect portal. Clear of the pull zone, Steven's group huddled together as their prey disappeared into the pastel light of Steven's world, the portal shuddering to a close.

Still dizzy, Steven spoke up, "Wait. Shouldn't I have like, followed it…? That was my own world…" He felt confused. Had he just made a huge mistake?

"It'll be back, right?" Mabel said shakily.

"How many rounds of this will we have to take?" Wendy asked, breathless.

"As many as it takes." Stan replied, and Steven let his mind rest on the old man's confidence.

They gathered themselves next to Stan's car, fixated on the GPS software on Steven's phone. Right now, it wasn't getting a signal.

"Ha, what if the satellite went out right now?" Wendy mused.

Stan replied, "Please don't." They went quite again, waiting painfully.

"aAHHH! AHHH! There it is!" Mabel screamed as a blinking dot appeared on the screen. The gems, Dipper, and Connie had done it! The moth was back already!

"Oh god, it's in the middle of the lake." Stan said.

"No, Stan, that's an island. Skuttlebutt Island!" Mabel said. "We gotta hurry!"

They raced to the lake, and Steven knew that Stan was definitely breaking some traffic laws. By not driving on the actual road and all that.

Soon a beautiful lake opened up in front of them, literally because Stan had driven right to the edge of the water. In the foggy distance Steven saw a small island.

They raced to the water, where a young couple was getting into a small, probably rented boat.

"Ummm…" Steven began, but Stan leapt into the boat, revered the motor, and called for them to get in.

"Sorry!" Mabel called as they screamed away from the shore and the bewildered tourists.

"We went to an island the first time we fought it…" Steven muttered to himself, but Mable was listening.

"Maybe it likes islands." She said, sounding excited. "Me, Dipper, and Soos went to that one already. It has some beavers. But no mythical sea monsters."

"Really?" Steven was surprised, from Dipper's book it seemed likely that magical monsters lived in every corner of the town. "Well, now it has a mythical moth."

"Not for long," Stan grumbled, as he nearly crashed the boat into the shore and stepped out.

They ventured deeper into the island, the fog and spooky atmosphere getting under Steven's skin. It was actually really fun, to be venturing into a new place with a group of friends. He wished the reality of the situation didn't have to be so serious.

The moth's telltale humming grew louder as they approached a cave inset into a rocky side of the island's hills. Why did it have to be a cave AGAIN?

"Crap." Stan was standing by the cave's opening, unable to fit his rather broad shoulders through it. "I think the only ones who can get in here are… Mabel and Steven." His already wrinkled brows furrowed with frustration.

"We'll be ok, Gruncle Stan." Mabel said, but Steven had to wonder how they would get the moth to switch universes without killing them both first.

"We just have to annoy it and leave, right?" Mabel answered his question, trusting eyes fixed on him. "And you have your hamster ball shield!"

They all startled at a screech echoing from the cave entrance. The moth was in there, and it was awake.

"Ya. Let's do it." He said with a nod at Mabel.

The two kids squeezed into the cave, leaving the adults to talk nervously outside.

"It's dark." Mabel stated, and they pushed forward, stumbling over rocks and banging into the low ceiling. Finally, the cave opened up, illuminated by the pale green glow of the moth that was waiting on the ceiling, just as it had before. As the pair of children fell into the clearing, it cried out and started firing silver beams at its agitators.

Steven had called up his bubble immediately. The surface shuddered as the beams slammed into it, but it was a memento of his mother, Rose Quartz. It wouldn't be broken by such an attack.

"Ummm…" Mabel yelled, "It's not going anywhere."

She was right. The moth just hovered, raining its silvery terror down on them after about a full minute. What should they do? Steven tried to think of something, but he couldn't bring himself to consider any solution that involved lowering his force field.

"Lower the bubble, crystal gem Steven!" Mabel was standing up, a weird contraption in her hand.

"Is that a hookshot?!" Steven cried. He'd always wanted to see one in action. But he paused. If he followed Mabel's orders, she could get hurt.

"C'mon, Steven, trust me!" Mabel was frowning at him.

"Ok." He breathed, inhaling a massive breath as he willed himself to call the bubble away.

"Steven?" Mabel asked. "I've almost got it!" Steven replied breathlessly, finding he was almost too nervous to lower his shield at all.

"BAM!" Mabel yelled as the bubble came down, and her hookshot launched foreword. Steven heard the moth's signature scream as the metal end of the tool hit it right in the face, but the victory was short lived. A beam soared over Steven's head and crashed into Mabel, who was launched into the cave wall behind them.

Steven felt the powerful tug of the moths portal as it snapped open. He clung to the rocky side of the cave, holding Mabel between himself and the moth. He felt his shoes get torn off, his hair lashing widely, but he would. Not. Let. Go.

He gasped as the portal slammed back into thin air.

"Mabel?" He cried, inches from her face, her eyes closed, body limp. A raw gash ran from her shoulder to her belly button. Steven's vision swam as the tears rushed into his eyes, stinging with despair and the ash from Mabel's singed clothing. "MABEL?"


	14. Chapter 14

**-25: Dipper-**

Dipper's heart was doing cartwheels in his chest as he saw the little "ping" on the screen that indicated that the moth was back in Beach City.

"It's here again! Where exactly is this?" He handed the phone to Connie, who was much better at reading the GPS.

She bounced excitedly. "It's at the Big Donut?!" She squawked.

"Oh." Pearl said calmly. "That's close."

"Sure, but people work there! Let's go!" Dipper said, remembering the nice clerk who had given him water and her surly companion.

They had corned the moth for the first round at a peculiar place they had taken the warp pad to, some kind of strawberry coated battlefield. He was happy they had chosen to return to the beach house to wait for the next round, as it was as close as you could get to the Big Donut.

Sadie and Lars intercepted the group as they plunged down the hill.

"Oh. Good." Lars said joylessly.

"Told you they would already be on this. Good luck guys!" Sadie called to the gems.

"Just to make sure, a giant moth materialized in your shop, right?" Dipper asked briskly.

"You got it, new kid!" Lars answered, clearly over this whole mess. He plopped down on the ground, looking miserable.

The moth has made a mess of the shop. It was humming and crying, enormous wings sending chairs, tables, and donuts flying. As the gems leapt into action, the creature exploded thorough the shops front window and crashed, spectacularly, into the huge BIG DONUT donut.

The humans watched from a distance in awe. No need to get close when the gems were, well, almost invincible and skilled at combat. Amethyst pulled the moth to the ground with her whip next to the demolished giant donut; Pearl spun gracefully unto its back and stabbed it neatly, and finally Garnet punched it back into the shattered shop window with a single blow.

"I wish we had some popcorn right now." Dipper muttered to Connie.

"You kidding?" Connie replied. "This is better than any movie. It always is..." Dipper nodded in solemn agreement.

"Haha, you guys make this sound like this isn't a disaster." Sadie said, but her tone suggested that she had seen this kind of action before and was adjusted to it.

Lars snorted. "We are basically experts at... whatever this is."

"Dipper! Do you want to go back?" Garnet was calling him. He stood up, watching as the moth crossed its rings and prepared to travel to Gravity Falls. But it was too late for him to make a choice. The moth was already gone.

"Dang." He said bitterly. "There's so much going on I keep forgetting about that "a way home" part."

"It should come back." Connie said. "Did it seem tired or hurt up to you? Like… is our plan working?"

"I hope so." Dipper sighed, glancing at the "no signal" message on the GPS tracker. "I really hope so."

**-26: Steven-**

Steven fought back the raw panic that hovered in his mind like darkness right before sleep.

He remembered slowly. He had healing powers. HEALING POWERS. He could save Mabel. It's what he was for. Saving humans. Healing injuries. But as he looked at Mabel's torn body, all he could think of was what was to come. The faces of the people waiting outside the cave. Dipper's broken heart. Waddles sadness when his owner never came home.

"No." He muttered. He had healed Dippers leg. He could heal this, too.

His arm shaking, he placed his palm on Mabel's chest where the wound the worst. He gave a chocked gasp as he felt a slight fluttering beneath her chest. She wasn't actually dead! She was still _alive!_

The relief he felt was the cool wave of joy one feels when they wake up from a ghastly nightmare, a joy that filled his whole body. There was still hope.

Steven was surprised by a warm pink glow that found even the darkest corners of the cavern. He felt strength leave his own body and transfer into Mabel, her wound closing up, rapidly congealing into a thick scar that finally faded into a nearly invisible line.

Steven closed his arms around her and sobbed.

Distantly, he heard voices. _"hey kids, what is going in there? Mabel? Steven? We need to go!"_ It was the others, waiting outside!

Steven hoisted Mabel into his arms, slowly working his way through the sharp, cramped corridor that led back into the fading daylight. Finally he collapsed outside, to the horrified gasps from the waiting adults.

"MABEL!" Stan howled, picking her up and staring with dismay at the damage to her clothes and body. "She-? What happened?" Steven was very freaked out to see tears in Stan's eyes. He seemed like a man who never cried.

"S-s-she got hit by a- a beam, and I healed her so I think she's ok." The words gushed out.

"You HEALED her? Dude…" Soos touched Mabel's arm gently. Wendy was covering her mouth, in shock. Steven inched closer, wanting the comfort of other humans.

Finally, Mabel coughed back to life. "A-Wah? Stan? Are you… crying?" Stan set Mable down, who swayed a bit as she caught her balance. "Woooh, what happened to everybody? What's with the waterworks?" She smiled like nothing was wrong, her braces glinting.

Now everyone was laughing AND crying.

"Wow, that hurts like CRAP!" Mabel said, patting the thin scar on her torso.

"Mabel, don't!" Steven cried in alarm, but she smiled at him.

"You saved my life! You're my hero!" She gave him a sloppy hug. "Ow."

"Ok, ok" Wendy spoke up, rubbing water off her face. "The GPS went off. The moth is back near the Mystery Shack. Should we…?"

"Maybe we shouldn't…" Stan started, but Mabel shouted him down.

"No way! We have to save the universe! "Are you all just gonna give up just because I got hurt!? I'm not even _dead!_ Have some backbone!" Mabel huffed.

They couldn't argue with her now. The group shuffled back to the boat, preparing for another round with the accursed moth.


	15. Chapter 15

**-27: Dipper-**

Dipper wondered if this was the last wonderful Beach City sunset he would ever have the privilege of enjoying. He had made up his mind; the next round with the moth he would go back to Gravity Falls. And if Steven was still there, he'd tell him to get back to Beach City. This had been a wild adventure. But they both had to go home.

"I wish you lived here." Connie said. "Steven really likes you. We could all be friends…"

"We ARE friends, Connie. Even if, ya, we live in other universes, lame, ya…" Dipper stumbled over his response.

"Hello." A voice startled him. He was sitting on the porch with Connie, waiting. Now Pearl stood in the doorway, awkwardly facing them.

"Hi." Dipper said flatly, glancing over his shoulder at the graceful gem. What did she want NOW?

"I…" she closed her eyes, hands folded. "I want to apologize for the way I treated you the other day. It wasn't fair."

Dipper let her words hang in the air. He relished in her pained expression as he turned to face her, holding back his reply long enough to get his revenge. But he had taken it about a second too far, and immediately felt gross.

"Hey it's ok, you where just confused. It was a mistake. We all… make them?" His voice rose as he ran out of a cool comeback.

"Thank you. You are… an unusually intelligent and hard-working human being." With that, she turned back into the beach house.

"Wow." Dipper breathed. "That was… nice?"

"Dipper, look!" Connie was holding up the phone, eyes shimmering. "It says… the moth is… right here?!"

Dipper leapt off his chair, and to his relief the gems burst from the house, weapons drawn.

"Is it broken?" Dipper asked.

But it definitely wasn't. A deafening roar rocked the entire beach house, and a perfectly circular portal opened up right on the shore of the beach. Everyone raced down towards it, but it didn't close up like it should have. Something was different.

Dipper's ears rang as the moths humming rose to a scream, and he saw that its gleaming green body was flapping and splashing, caught between the two worlds, trapped in its own portal.

The gems and two humans skirted the terrifying scene, unsure.

"Wait…" Connie was saying, and Steven saw it too.

Mabel, Gruncle Stan, Wendy, Soos and Steven stood on the other side of the portal, looking as stunned as they were.

"We have to cross over now! STEVEN!" Dipper yelled as loud as he could, and both boys walked slowly towards the edge of the portal, straining against the gusts that whirled violently around it.

Dipper was close enough to the edge count the cuts and bruises on Steven's face when something started glowing. The moth was burning with a cosmic white fire, blotting out all other sounds with its maniac hum. It was just like when the caterpillars exploded. But this time it was on a colossal scale.

Dipper knew what had to happen.

"Steven!" He screamed so hard he tasted blood, but he couldn't hear his own voice. "Bubble it! Invert your shield! Bubble the moth!"

Steven stared at Dipper, and understanding finally crossed his eyes. With startling speed, a huge wall of pink engulfed the dying moth.

Dipper swayed. This wasn't right. It was close, but it wasn't right. He and Steven were still inside! Steven had bubbled all three of them together!

Distorted through the rose colored energy, he saw his friends and family pounding on the bubble's edges frantically. He couldn't hear them. He couldn't even feel anything but the monumental vibrations of the twitching moth. He saw his own mortal terror reflected in Steven's shocked face.

But this was sort of ok. The blast wouldn't hurt anybody else like this. Maybe it was the right thing. Perhaps those who passed into other universes could never return, like cursed travelers.

He wanted, so bitterly, to survive in spite of anything and everything. But then the world just screamed and fell apart.

**-28: Steven-**

The universe was singing. It was like a rushing wind, an endless static, a sweet blanket of white noise. It was layered and infinitely complex, wonderful and terrifying. Was he part of it? Or was he something else? He was…

Steven Universe opened his eyes. As they adjusted, shimmering outlines began to emerge from a vast, colorless space. It was pure light, and trails of darkness began to curl like smoke into shapes.

With a flash of memory, he knew what they were! Houses… a horizon over an ocean… it was Beach City! A bizarre sketch of his true home, flickering and dancing, like an uncertain daydream.

He spun around, suddenly noticing how odd it was to be floating. He set his feet down, feeling more secure as he felt a ground beneath him. Where did the ground come from? This thought made him start to float again. He stared ahead, at the awesome statue that his house was in, trying to pick out details…

The longer he looked, the more faded the space became. Light overtook his vision, and the static crept back into him. From far below, chunks of pure darkness surged forward, like spotters in his eyes, consuming him, becoming him, a vast and blank emptiness.

"WAIT!" Steven cried, gasping.

The world came back into focus, the darkness retreating. He couldn't go there yet! He had a destiny as a crystal gem! Where had his memories gone?! Why was he here?! How could he get back… back home! He played back thoughts of his mother, the gems, all his human friends, people he loved. Why had been it so hard to _remember?_

Something bumped into his head. He turned around, shocked to see that a person was floating through the air!

He reached up and yanked the body out of the sky. It was a boy; messy brown hair, a weird mark on his forehead, but he was missing his hat…

His hat?

"DIPPER!" Steven shouted, noticing now how his friend had blank eyes and no expression, empty like the darkness that had threatened him.

"Dipper, come back! Wake up! Hey!" He shook Dipper, remembering how he had held the boy's twin in the same way a short time ago, how much he had wanted her to survive, and the hope that he had found with her steady heartbeat.

He placed his ear on Dipper chest. There it was- ba-da-bump, ba-da-bump!

"DIPPER!" He howled. "You're still alive! Please! Come back…"

A deep stillness settled over both of them. Maybe he should give up, and follow Dipper to wherever he had gone. The emptiness circled them like vultures.

"No… no no no no…" Steven muttered, clinging desperately to the lines that cut through the light and formed his life.

Dipper suddenly gasped, as if coming up for breath after a long dive. He clutched Steven's arms, out of breath. They looked at one another, the sight of another person tearing both of them away from the beckoning abyss.

"What is this? Where are we…? Who…? STEVEN!" Dipper wailed, floating a few inches away from him. "I remember! We DIED! The moth exploded and we _died_!"

"Steven! We're DEAD!"

Dipper was panting, panic overwhelming him.

"Calm down! It's not that bad." Steven said calmly. "Sure, we died, I guess, but we're here. Wherever this is… wait, I know! It's Beach City! Kind of."

Dipper tilted his head. "Beach City? This is Gravity Falls. Look, the Shack is right over there." He pointed.

Steven turned, but he saw the Beach House. "I see the beach house. The stairs are right here." He dashed over, Dipper following.

"Nope, now we're right in front of the Shack." Dipper said. "I guess we see different things… we each see our own world!" His eyes light up, and Steven was glad to see his old enthusiasm for solving mysteries was back.

"Do you really think this is the afterlife?" He asked seriously, and Steven replied "If it is, why are we the only ones here? Seems kinda weird…"

Dipper started to float again, hand on his chin. Steven watched him, suddenly forgetting to think. He saw the lines of the Big Donut in the distance fade, and heard the static resting on his shoulder.

"STEVEN!" Dipper was yelling at him, his face twisted in fear. "Don't stop thinking! Don't stop talking! We have to just… keep BEING, ok?"

"Okay, Okay." Steven breathed deeply. "Weeeell I don't know what we are supposed to do here. Especially if we don't see the same stuff."

"Ya… but hey. Wait a sec. Remember what Pearl said? That thing about… the in-between?" Dipper sounded excited.

Steven could feel his heart pounding. "It's where the moth is from. Heeyyy… maybe…"

"The inbetween! That's where we are! The moth didn't… We didn't…" Dipper took a laborious breath.

"We're NOT DEAD!" Steven cried joyfully. "We just teleported to the in-between! That's why we still have heartbeats!"

Dipper was laughing. "That makes no sense AT ALL! It's absurd! But it's still probably true!"

"Then how do we get to the not-between?" Steven wondered aloud.

"Maybe… uhhh…" Dipper seemed to have reached a wall. But Steven felt better. The world was in sharper focus, the lines not blurring so much. There was still no color, but Steven remembered what color was easily enough now. If the moth exploded on the beach, then maybe the portal was still there? It had to be. He knew it was. But how did he know that?

"Dipper! We can just use the portal to go home!"

"What?" Dipper called, sounding confused.

"The portal on the beach! It's still there!" Steven yelled.

"The Beach?" There is no… OHHHH!" Dipper knew now too!

Together they raced towards the portal, on both the shore in front of the beach house and in the woods next to Mystery Shack. They could still go home. They could still exist.

As they approached home, Dipper and Steven turned to each other.

"Thanks again, Steven." Dipper said, smiling. "Also, Connie is awesome. The gems are awesome. You're awesome." He gushed.

"You're even MORE awesome!" Steven answered, stars in his eyes, trying to reply with his entire being. "Tell Mabel, and Stan, Soos, Wendy and Waddles I said hi!"

"I will!" Dipper called back earnestly.

For a moment everything vanished, and then Steven Universe and Dipper Pines at last returned to where they came from.


	16. Epilogue

**-Epilogue: Dipper-**

Twilight was settling over the rich forests of Gravity Falls.

Two young kids, a brother and sister, walked into a clearing in among the redwood trees. They hoisted backpacks, and carried an easel between them. Finally choosing the right spot, they set the easel down and placed a large pad of drawing paper on it.

Ever since he had returned home, Dipper couldn't seem to leave Beach City. Memories of Steven and the crystal gems where always there, in his own head, and he missed them. The portals had all vanished with the moth. But the journal had taught him that nothing was impossible, and it had made friendships across universes possible. And it had united them once again.

"Alright Mabel, let's go." Dipper urged his sister, who was shaking a can of hair spray. Dipper closes his eyes as she soaked the paper, hating the smell. In his hand he clutched a jar filled with yellowish powder. Swiftly he opened it, taking a handful of the sparkling dust and spreading it on the smelly paper.

"I love this part!" Mabel cried, striking match and tossing it unto the bizarre painting that now covered the canvas.

The twins "oooooed" and "awwwed" as the dust burst into brilliant green flame, a circle of pure light emerging from the center and dancing outward. The flames reached the edges of where the hair spray had stained the surface and halted. Floating beyond the bright white ring was a rocky clearing near a sparkling crystal beach.

Even though this was the third time they'd done this, it continued to amaze Dipper. Thanks to some notes in the journal about possible uses for the lunamensional moth's scales, Dipper had rather quickly discovered a way to use the dusty remains of the moth to open a portal back into Steven's universe.

Bright with anticipation, the twins waited, focused on the other world.

"Heeeeere's Steven!" Steven suddenly lurched into the frame, thrusting his arm through the portal and waving it around, a huge smile on his face.

"Noooo! Stop!" Dipper rushed forward to meet him, laughter in his voice. He grabbed Steven's arm and struggled to push it back through.

"No limbs in the portal! No limbs in the portal!"

Mabel and Steven picked up his mocking chant. Dipper had tried to set strict ground rules about how to use the portals, but this one rule was always getting broken.

"Guys!" Connie pushed her way into the portal, intentionally waving at them with her arm on the twin's side, smiling.

After a few minutes of goofing around, they got around to what they had come together for.

"Okay." Dipper sighed. "Who wants to go first?"

"I will!" Steven could never wait for anything. "Dipper, it's for you!"He held out a package, shoddily wrapped in the cartoon section of the newspaper. A piece of paper was attached with a sticker of a crying waffle, with the words "To: Dipper From: Steven" with a heart.

Dipper smiled at how ridiculously earnest Steven could be. Wanting to build anticipation, he opened the package slowly. After all, this was the first present of their "Missed Holiday Celebrations (During Summer)" that they had all planned together. Until they could find a way to make travel through the wormholes safe for human bodies, they were limited to using these homemade portals to hang out at a distance.

They had tried to come up with the most elaborate activities possible without actually going anywhere.

"Hey wow, it's a… guy?" Dipper said uncertainly, holding up a small plastic toy that was shaped like a man with a hat.

"They have guys in your world?!" Steven gasped, but Dipper laughed, "No, I mean it's a guy…"

"It's ranger G.U.Y.! From the G.U.Y. series! See?" Steven pulled an identical figure from his pocket and held it through the portal. "He's the best G.U.Y. of all! I got another one, so we can both have one! I wrote your initials on him for you." Dipper turned the toy over to see that the feet were marked with "DP." Steven's "guy" had SU instead.

"Haha omigosh, he's so tiny and cute!" Mabel exclaimed.

Steven loudly whispered, "I have one for you too."

"Thanks Steven." Dipper said, wondering why Steven was still collecting action figures at _his_ age, but happy to have trinket from his friend anyway.

"Oh hey, Dipper, you missed this." Mabel said, holding up a piece of paper. Dipper leaned close to the sister to see a diagram Steven had drawn.

For a moment he was confused. "Is this…?"

"It's the drawing I made to show your family. To explain about the other universe. I had it in my pocket and it ended up at my place, but it belongs in your universe. I just sorta copied you, so… I dunno, you could add it to your idea wall if you want!"

Dipper was enchanted. The drawing was bisected by a vertical line, the labels "Us" on one side and "Dipper" on the other. Crude illustrations of both Steven and Dipper's head accompanied smiling earths, with lines that connected the Steven head to Dipper's earth and Dipper's head to the "Us" Earth.

"No, Steven, this is WAY better than my version." Dipper exclaimed, the image making him oddly nostalgic for his adventure to another world. "Thanks."

"Yours was a lot more helpful. But your welcome!" Steven retorted.

"My turn!" Mabel announced, presenting a rainbow colored present dusted with pink glitter to Steven.

Steven gasped with joy as he unwrapped it. "My costume!" He cried, holding up a pink shirt also covered with glitter, a long pink and yellow scarf and piles of bows. "My Crystal gem outfit! Awesome!"

"I made a number of improvements as well." Mabel added proudly.

"STICKERS!" Steven could hardly contain himself as he lifted sheets of stickers out of the box. "PUFFY STICKERS! Of… of GEMS!? Mabel you are the best! This is the best!" Steven had wrapped the scarf around his shoulders, running up to the portal to hug Mabel as best he could in the limited space.

"Thank you, thank you, I do try." Mabel smiled, and Dipper knew that no one could beat Mabel when it came to embellishing gifts.

"I wanna give you mine now!" Steven gave Mabel a similar package as the one he gave Dipper, his eyes glowing as she tore it open.

"AHHH!" Inside were… stickers. "I've never SEEN stickers like this! These are one-of-a-kind-from-another-universe level of rarity!" Mabel ranted.

"It's "Crying Breakfast Friends." Steven said casually. "It's pretty popular over here."

"AND I got a little cat!" Mabel said, and Steven clarified, "It's not a cat, it's a G.U.Y. Cat G.U.Y."

"So you mean a… cat?" Dipper said flatly.

"Who's a GUY!" Steven threw his arms up, not skipping a beat.

"Okay, guys." Connie finally spoke up after Mabel's excitement had died down. Dipper had noticed how shy she became in a group. "I got something for both of you. Here."

She passed a set of book through the portal.

"It's the all three books in the "Unfamilar Familiar" series. It's a young adult action/fantasy series that I think you both would really like. Probably for different reasons. Dipper, you have to let me know what you think of the ending." She and Steven glanced at each other.

"Awesome. We all love books from another universe. Thanks Connie!" Dipper said, and Mabel was already eagerly flipping through the last book. "You'll spoil it for yourself!" Dipper warned.

"Anyway, here Connie, you must have read our minds because we got you, well, open it." Connie reached into the gift bag the twins handed her.

"A Vagabound's Instructions for the Universe. Wow!"

"It's kiiind of a high reading level, but I think you can handle it." Dipper added, making sure he sounded sarcastic so Connie wouldn't think he actually thought she couldn't read it. Connie was more than smart enough for an adult book. "Thought it was… thematically appropriate."

"Dipper's showing off." Mabel hissed, prompting an angry "Mabel!" from her brother.

"And this is… a picture book of baby animals." Connie furrowed her brows, then tried to look grateful.

"For when you need to relax and stop reading those serious books. Look, it's so adorable! Look at the baby pigs! Awww!" Mabel certainly liked her own gift, but Connie looked bewildered.

Dipper laughed. "She means well."

Finally, Steven looked at Dipper.

"It's the last gift. My gift from Dipper." Steven said with rapture.

"Okaaay, here you go." He groaned, as if giving gifts was a tiresome activity. He handed Steven the present, which he had tried to do a decent job of wrapping himself without asking for Mabel's aid.

"No way." Steven said as he tore off the Mystery Shack wrapping paper.

"No way. I thought you didn't have any more?!" Steven was grinning from ear to ear, holding a blue and white Mystery Shack pine tree hat.

"We found out that there was a huge box full of them in the back." Dipper explained.

"Stan actually made me PAY for it…" He grumbled.

Slowly, as everyone watched, Steven set the hat upon his fuzzy head with the delicate touch of someone preforming a scared ritual.

"It's… perfect." He breathed. Dipper smiled at how very far from perfect his own hat looked on Steven's oversized head. In way, though, it still fit him.

"Thank you!" Steven cried. "I'll cherish it."

After musing over their gifts for a while, Dipper and Connie started to discuss the portal and the gaps in their knowledge about the whole situation.

"From what i've read in the journal, it seems like the author only knew about the moth because he was messing around with other universes to begin with." Dipper said. "In_ any_ normal circumstance… there's no reason the moth should have started interfering with the "not-between" space. SOMETHING in one or both of our universes _must_ have disturbed it."

"We just don't know what." Connie sighed. "It seems highly likely that it was something gem related."

"I know." Dipper replied. "I wish I could talk to Pearl about it. But she might make us stop opening the portals like this…"

They hadn't informed the adults in their lives about the re-established connections with the other world. They wanted to wait until they had a safe way to go back and forth… they worried they would be told to stop, that it was "too dangerous."

Suddenly the edges of the portal started to shudder and buzz.

"Darn. It's gonna close soon." Dipper said, disappointed.

The group of young kids gathered around the unstable portal to say goodbye.

"This is always so fun." Steven sighed. "I wish we could hang out more often."

"Ya." Dipper and the others agreed heartily. "I'm working hard on a solution for the worm hole degradation effect. Maybe someday, I can finally play dance dance with you again! And see Beach City! And hang out with the gems!"

"Yes." Steven said softly, eyes sparkling. "Yes, Dipper, we have to! I miss Stan and the others too!" He held his hand through the portal.

"No limbs in the portal!" They all yelled, and Dipper gave Steven an enthusiastic high five.

Just as certainly as the sun sets, the portal started to run out of fuel and closed up as night fell in both worlds. Thankfully, there were no limbs in the portal when this happened.

But they would be back. The link that had been built between the forest and the beach was the kind of bond that could outlast the universes themselves.


End file.
